Disclaimer: This story was written by a fan only for the enjoyment of other fans, without any monetary compensation. Gundam Wing and its characters are registered trademarks of Bandai Entertainment Inc.™ and Sotsu Agency. All rights reserved.

A big Thank You to KT who is taking time out of her busy schedule to help me proofread this story.

The Dragon King

Book 1- Of New Kings and New Friends

Chapter 2

Holding on to the saddle so tightly that the knuckles of his hands turned white, Wufei swallowed nervously as Epyon fanned out his wings and lifted into the air. The great dragon soared higher and higher; the additional weight not seeming to bother him in the slightest.

Wide-eyed the boy watched as the forest beneath them grew smaller and smaller with each flap of those large, membranous wings. Eventually he could not make out individual trees anymore; everything had blurred together into one large green mass. Within the sea of green, the Dragon Shrine looked as small as an anthill.

The tawny-haired dragon knight smiled softly as he looked down at the boy sitting in front of him. "Beautiful, isn't it?"

Too amazed to even answer, Wufei just nodded. He had never imaged that flying could be this incredible. Now he really could not wait for Nataku to grow large enough to carry him. As they climbed even higher the winds were becoming increasingly strong and more frigid.

Steadily the little group headed toward Mount Haku, and eventually the boy lost sight of Blue Fir Lake and the Dragon Shrine. A few lengths ahead of them Leo, the earth-colored dragon, soared calmly through the sky. Nataku had been flying next to the much larger Epyon for most of the time, but suddenly when Wufei turned his head he couldn't see her anymore. Alarmed he started to look around.

"What's wrong?' Treize wanted to know. The knight had wrapped his left arm protectively around the boy's waist while he held the dragon's reins with the other hand.

"It's Nataku…She was right here, just a moment ago..." There was a hint of panic in Wufei's voice.

"She is right behind us. See!" the tawny-haired man calmed him.

Wufei gazed back over his shoulders, satisfied when he spotted a glimpse of her large wings.

"She is using Epyon's body to shield herself from the wind," Treize explained. "It's something young dragons often do in flight. There is no need to worry, she seems to be one smart girl, Wufei."

"Yes, I know." the boy nodded proudly.

"Now hold on tight, we are going to break through the clouds." Treize urged, and moments later dove right into the grayish fog-like mass above them.

Instinctively the boy closed his eyes and tightened his grip on the saddle horn. For a few moments the air was heavy and thick with moisture. Then they broke through the cloud cover again, and Wufei felt a nudge against his right shoulder.

"Look straight ahead."

Carefully the boy opened his eyes and gasped in awe. Directly in front of them lay Mount Haku. Its icy, snow-covered slopes sparkled in the sun like silver. It was truly a magnificent sight.

Soon thereafter the group reached the peak. Epyon circled several times over a large flattened area before slowly touching down. The ground was bare and rocky, the earth looked dark and almost charred, and not as much as a single stalk of mountain grass grew there.

So, this was the place where, according to legend, Shenlong himself and the man who would eventually become the first Dragon Knight were locked in deadly battle for seven days and seven nights.

Still to this day Knights came from all over Galados, and even beyond the kingdom's borders, to test their dragon's strength against one another, at the very place where it all began. The older pupils at the Dragon Shrine occasionally came up here as well to hone their skills in battle, but Wufei had never been allowed to join them, not even to watch.

It was said that the air at mount Haku was laced with dark energy, a power that could easily overwhelm those weak of heart, and sometimes even the strongest warriors. Wufei felt a chill run down his spine as he was overcome by a feeling of awe mixed with dread.

Treize opened the golden clasp that held his cape together, removed the garment and hung it loosely over the boy's shoulder before dropping him off at the edge of the battlefield. "Stay here!" he urged. "And don't come any closer. It could be dangerous."

Wufei nodded in acknowledgement. Meanwhile Nataku had landed next to Epyon. With a few nervous chirps she tugged in her wings as she settled down beside her master. The boy watched as Treize guided his dragon to the center of the charred area, where Zechs and Leo were already waiting.

For a few moments the dragons stood head to head, staring each other down, blowing little clouds of hot air through their nostrils. Their riders reached for their shields and unsheathed their swords. They bowed to each other, and then the battle began…

#

Treize could feel a familiar rush as he charged toward his opponent. It was a feeling that came with every battle, mock or real, a feeling unlike any other and hard to describe. It could make your knees weak and your heart pound.

The sound of metal hitting metal echoed through the mountain range as Zechs stopped the attack with his sword. For a while the two knights danced around one another, charging and blocking over and over again. Finally Epyon took to the sky and Zechs pushed his dragon to follow. On the ground the large creatures seemed slow, almost awkward, in the air however there was nothing slow or clumsy about them. As they chased and evaded each other, the fight was becoming more and more intense. Soon the sounds of clashing swords was drowned out by the flapping of wings and roars of dominance. As Epyon soared past the other dragon he managed to hit him square in the chest with his tail. The impact knocked Zechs nearly out of the saddle. Angrily Leo snapped around, spitting fire and hurling the flame after his opponent. Treize ducked instinctively, even as Epyon dodged the fireball with ease.

###

"Instructor Noin, look!"

About ten of the oldest and most experienced pupils at the shrine were practicing swordsmanship on the training grounds when one of them suddenly called her name and pointed toward the sky. "Someone is fighting at Mount Haku."

The young woman raised her hand to cover her eyes as she looked up. Indeed, the sky around the mountain peak was flashing in the most brilliant colors she had ever seen. And there could be just one explanation. Only fighting dragons could produce such a magnificent display. The colors and lights in the atmosphere differed depending on the strength and ability of the dragon and his rider. From what she could tell...whoever was up there right now had to be a formidable warrior.

"Instructor Noin, can we fly up there and watch them?"

"Sorry, but we don't have time to loaf around today."

"But Instructor…"

Noin raised her hand to cut off the protests. "Before too long his Highness the king will arrive, and if I remember correctly some of you still have to complete their training for the day. Now let's not waste any more time, shall we?"

After a few more moments of moping and mumbling the students picked up their weapons and resumed their swordplay.

#

The magnificent display of power above Mount Haku did not remain unnoticed in the study of the Headmistress either. Lady Une put down her pen and gazed out of the window. From her desk she had a perfect view of the sacred mountain.

Your highness, somehow I reckoned you would seize the opportunity for battle while you're here. After all, you never could walk away from a good fight, could you? Some things just never change.

Although one would never have known from her physical appearance Lady had been in charge of the Dragon Shrine for more than a century now. Yes, of course, she too was a Dragon Knight.

Although it was something not even those scholars who studied all the ancient texts and scrolls understood completely, it was a fact that once a dragon bonded with its master both of them changed. Perhaps it was true, as some wise men suggested, that their souls fused into one. But then of course there were also those who questioned whether or not a dragon even possessed a soul.

In any case once a dragon bonded the beast became capable of understanding human speech. And in return its master gained the ability to call upon it freely. It was said that some dragon knights were able to communicate with their - and other - dragons mind to mind. But it was so rare of an occurrence that it too was dismissed as a myth by many scholars. However, the most amazing thing was that a bonded pair of dragon and man began to age at the same pace.

Une had met dragon knights who had celebrated the 500th day of their birth without as much as a single grey hair on their head. To a normal human it might seem that dragon knights lived eternally. But they did not; eventually they aged and died, it just happened at a very slow pace. Of course, they still could be killed in battle or be ravaged by disease just like any other human. If that happened, a master-less dragon stricken by grief often reverted to its most primal state and had to be destroyed. On the other hand, Une had never heard of any knight surviving the death of its dragon by more than a moon-cycle. It was another one of the mysteries scholars and wise men were still struggling to understand.

The headmistress picked up her pen and dipped it into the little inkwell. The sun was nearing its highest point. In a few hours the king and his entourage were scheduled to arrive, and there were still countless little things for her to take care of. Sometimes she couldn't help but remember how much less complicated things had been when she was just a member of the royal guard. But then again, nobody had forced her to take this position, and it certainly had its own rewards.

###

Wufei watched the battle that was unfolding in the sky above him in silent amazement. He had never before seen anything like it. Sometimes he wondered how the two knights even managed to stay in the saddle while their dragons soared and spiraled through the air. At one point Epyon plummeted headfirst toward the ground. Just when Wufei thought that he was going to crash and kill himself and his rider for sure, the dragon pulled up; his wings missing the ground by mere inches.

Letting out a breath he didn't even know he was holding the boy buried his hand in the soft fur around Nataku's neck. The small dragon was lying next to him, her head resting against his leg, but Wufei could tell by the way she was flicking her tail that she was not as relaxed as she seemed.

In the beginning the boy had kept his fingers crossed for the tawny-haired knight. The older man seemed more experienced and destined to win the battle, but nevertheless, Zechs seemed to be holding his own and Wufei could not help but admire him for that.

Somehow the long-haired knight was able to move around Epyon and attack from behind. His heavy longsword came down hard on the dragon's left thigh. As he spun around Epyon roared, more in anger and surprise than in pain. The weapon did leave little more than a scratch on the tough dragon hide, but it infuriated the creature. He snapped his teeth at his opponent, but when he could not reach him he sent a blast of flames after him. Too close to dodge, Zechs used his shield to block the first fireball and then dove to evade the second.

Wufei eyes went wide as he realized that the flame that missed Zechs was heading directly toward him. The two knights noticed it, too. Almost in unison they yelled for the boy to watch out and move. But Wufei, frozen in shock was only able to raise his arms to shield his face. Luckily at the last moment Nataku jumped in, wrapping her wings around the startled boy just as the fireball hit. Wufei could feel the heat even through the thick membrane of her wings, but the flames never even singed him.

"Wufei, are you alright?" Both knights had brought down their dragons in the center of the battle area. Treize was first to jump out of the saddle and rush toward the boy. But before he even reached him Nataku put herself between Wufei and the knight. With her wings spread and her neck extended she looked like an oversized mother hen protecting her chicks. The little dragon shook her head as she let out a few angry chirps and tweets. Sensing a threat toward his master, Epyon roared in response. The sound echoed through the mountain range like the rolling of thunder.

"Enough Epyon!" Treize raised his hand as he held his step. "Are you alright, Wufei?" he repeated. "You didn't get hurt, did you?"

"I'm fine, thanks to Nataku." Wufei shook his head. "I'm sorry; I really was trying to dodge but…"

"You have nothing to feel sorry about. It was not your fault," Treize assured him. "I'm just grateful that you weren't injured." He turned his head toward Zechs who was standing beside him. "I think we should stop our match here. We both got a little carried away there in the end, didn't we?"

The fair-haired knight nodded in agreement. "More than just a little, I'd say."

Is that the dark power of Mount Haku people are talking about? Wufei wondered.

"Well then, let's leave this place and descend down to the forest to let the dragons rest and have something to eat." Treize suggested.

#

Not long thereafter the two knights and Wufei were sitting around a fire that had quickly been lit with some help from Epyon. Over the fire roasted some fish Zechs had caught in the nearby stream and a rabbit shot by the older knight. The boy had provided his share of wild mushrooms and sweet berries to the feast; he had learned a long time ago from his mother which of them were eatable and which ones were best avoided.

The two older dragons were resting a little away beneath a group of trees, while Nataku didn't leave her master's side for even a moment. She still seemed to be carrying a grudge against Treize for his earlier mishap, and when the tawny haired man reached out to hand Wufei a skewer with fish and roasted mushrooms she actually tried to nip at his fingers.

"Nataku," the boy scolded. "I'm sorry, I don't know what's gotten into her; she never has acted like this before."

"It's alright," Treize laughed. "I very much deserved it. As I mentioned earlier, dragons are very protective creatures. I think it will take a while before she is ready to forgive me for putting you in danger."

"It's alright, Nataku." Wufei ruffled the soft hair around the dragon's neck. "I wasn't hurt. So, no harm no fault." He ripped off a piece of his fish and offered it to her. With a delighted chirp she gently picked the treat from the palm of his hand and swallowed it in one gulp.

"I don't think she should be eating your food." Zechs told him.

"Why not; is it bad for her?" The boy looked questioningly at the fair-haired knight. "Nataku and I have always shared our food. "

As the little dragon nudged his hand, begging for more scraps, Zechs gestured at her. "That's why," he said. "You are spoiling her."

"Only a little," Wufei admitted as he looked at Treize for reassurance. "That's all right, isn't it?"

With a soft smile the older man nodded. "I think so." He paused briefly before adding. "Wufei, there is something I would like to ask you."

"Yes?"

"Earlier you said you didn't like the king. Would you mind telling me why you feel that way?"

"That's because…" Wufei looked down; reluctant to answer it seemed, but finally he raised his head again and looked at the dragon knight "He doesn't care about his people. He doesn't care what happens to them."

Treize blinked, surprised. Nobody had ever accused him before of being blind to his subjects needs. But Zechs seemed even more taken aback by the statement than the king himself. The young man's eyes darkened.

"How dare you say such a thing? How would someone of the likes of you have any idea whether His Highness cares about his people or not?"

Wufei glared back at the fair-haired knight with the same intensity, his little hands tightening to fists. "I know, because if he did care, my village would not have been burned down, and the people who lived there would not have been captured or killed."

Startled at the resentment mixed with sadness in the boys voice Treize swallowed. "What…what happened?" he wanted to know.

"Two years ago, just before harvest season, our village was attacked by bandits on horseback. The village elder sent all the women and children into hiding and told the men to fight and hold off the attackers until help arrived. He said it shouldn't take long for the soldiers at the nearby outpost to notice the battle. But time went by and no help came. The village elder finally decided to send his own granddaughter and me to the outpost to alert the soldiers. We were riding together on a horse that we had captured from the bandits, but when we arrived at the outpost we realized that it had been abandoned a long time ago. The soldiers we had waited for never came, because the king didn't think we were important enough to spend money for our protection…"

"I don't think that's true," Zechs interrupted. "You should know that His Highness doubled the number of soldiers at outposts and guard stations since he was crowned. He has only been king for four years now. Have you ever considered that he perhaps didn't know that that outpost near your village had been abandoned?"

"He should have known," the boy snapped. "As the king he is supposed to know these things."

"You are quite an insolent little…"

"He is right, Zechs." Treize raised his hand to quiet his bodyguard. "Ignorance is a poor excuse." I would not allow any of my men to hide behind such an excuse and therefore neither should I.

"But…"

"If the king wants to call himself a competent and righteous ruler, he should know what's going on in every corner of his kingdom."

"But that's what he has Provincial Lords for. If they don't tell him these things how can it be his fault?"

"The king assigns the Provincial Lords. If they don't take care of their duties it's his fault for choosing them." Wufei replied and Treize shrugged and spread his hands as if to say: I couldn't have said it better myself.

"Fine." Zechs huffed. "I'm really glad that I'll never be king."

"But being king does have its advantages too," Treize pointed out, a tiny smirk curving his lips. Then he turned serious again as he looked at Wufei. "I really regret what happened to your village and your family, Wufei. I wish those things would not occur, and hopefully someday Galados will become a place where everyone can live in peace. But I'm curious about something else… You mentioned that you met Nataku shortly before soldiers found you in the woods and took you to the Dragon Shrine. Do you mind telling us the rest of the story?"

"I don't mind." The boy shook his head. "When we found the outpost empty Meiran and I decided to try reaching the Provincial Castle. The castle was many miles away but getting there was our only chance. Even if we could not get help in time at least we would be able to tell them what had happened to our village." Wufei paused and stared down in his lap. "But we never made it there. A small group of bandits had followed us. They attacked and killed our horse. Meiran said we would have a better chance if we split up. She wanted me to go on by myself while she was going to hold off the pursuers for a little while and then hide. She has always been a better fighter, while I was always better in running away from her, she said. But I had hurt my leg when the horse fell and I could not run as fast as I wanted to. At one point, when I was just too tired to go any further, I found what looked like a large burrow in the ground. I crawled inside to hide there. While I waited for nightfall I could hear the men searching the forest for me and I prayed for help and for them not to find me. I think Shenlong must have heard my prayers because suddenly the ground shook; I could see light in the furthest corner of the burrow and then I saw Nataku. I don't know where she came from but she put her wings around me and it made me feel very safe for some reason. I don't remember much after that. I must have fallen asleep. When I woke up I was at the Dragon Shrine where I was told that a group of provincial soldiers on patrol had found me." He paused again and looked at his dragon with fondness in his eyes. "Lady Une told me that Nataku had led the soldiers to me and then she disappeared. At first I thought that I was never going to see her again, and I wanted to go back to the forest to find her. But Lady Une explained that Dragons normally live in their own world and only rarely enter our world on their own. But when I got older I could try summoning her and when our bond was strong enough she would come." The boy had a tiny smirk on his face as he looked up at Treize. "But I did not want to wait until I got older, and finally Lady Une had Instructor Noin show me how to summon a dragon. I tried it myself and it worked. It really was not that hard. I think Nataku was just waiting for me to call her."

I tried and it really was not that hard… Zechs huffed. It took most people years of training before they were able to perform a successful summoning. Who in the name of Shenlong is this boy?

Even Treize was impressed by Wufei's story. "That's quite remarkable you know. The two of you must have a very strong connection."

"You really think so?"

"I do. I really do." The tawny-haired man nodded. "I would love to talk some more about it, but I'm afraid it will have to wait. Right now we should head back to the place where we first met. You will be riding with Zechs this time. He will drop you off at the Shrine on the way."

Wufei threw a timid gaze at Zechs but nodded. "All right. Will we meet again?" he wanted to know.

"Absolutely." Treize assured him."Perhaps sooner than you think."

"Before we leave I want to send Nataku home," the boy said. "She isn't used to flying this much and must be tired. Following us all the way back might be too much for her."

"Very well, then let's get ready."

T.B.C.

Author's Note: