Got another chapter done! The names of the other dragons will be revealed! Hope you enjoy, and as always, please review!

Chapter 13:

Training

After a few close calls with some trees that were rudely placed in Fenrir's way, he and Aunyx made it to the clearing on the outskirts of town that was to be their training grounds. Receiving mental images from Aunyx, he could see that everyone else had already arrived.

Blast it, already behind and we haven't even started yet!

"Sorry I'm late everyone"

They turned toward him as he drew close.

"Fenrir? What are you… I mean, you didn't have to… why are you here?"

He recognized the dumbfounded voice as Valeria. Aunyx's mental image showed her wearing skin-tight olive-green pants and a tan tank-top that didn't quite cover her stomach, revealing a small strip of skin above her waist. Her black hair was pulled into a loose ponytail.

"Come on, you knew I wasn't going to miss this just because of a small handicap. Besides, you said it yourself, you need someone to fail miserably"

He smiled in her general direction.

Valeria stuttered, unable to think of a reply.

"Fenrir!"

That time he knew the voice was his sister.

As if to confirm his assumption, she slammed into him, throwing her arms around his neck. He could feel the tears on her cheek and immediately felt guilty. He hadn't talked to her at all, had she known about what happened to him before now?

He gently pushed her back by the shoulders. Aunyx showed her wearing a loose white tunic and tan pants. Her hair was bound in a tight bun.

"I'm fine Evalette, don't worry about me. I can take part in training just like the rest of you, this-" -he motioned to his blindfold- "-doesn't change anything. I'm still better than all of you" he finished with a joking smile.

"Fenrir is it? Nice to meet you, I'm Icerara (ik-er-air-uh)"

Aunyx sent him an image of the Elf. It was the other male Chosen from the ceremony. He was a thickly built young man, with short reddish-orange hair that rose in the middle like a small mohawk. He wore a faded red tunic with a brown vest over it and short tan pants, the color of sand.

"Nice to meet you too Icerara"

After the brief introduction, Icerara became distracted by a group of passing Elven women, and left without another word.

"Hello, I'm Aerin"

Aunyx sent him an image of the new Elf approaching him. She was a petite young Elf, almost childish, and had short blonde hair that just barely reached chin-length. She had on a green tunic with an interesting floral pattern, and short brown pants.

"A pleasure to meet you as well Aerin"

The young Elf blushed shyly and hurried off to occupy her time picking flowers.

"Fenrir, you made it"

His mother entered the clearing. He reviewed Aunyx's image. She was wearing skin-tight brown pants and a green tunic. Nothing fancy like you would expect from a Queen, just simple attire suited to physical activity.

Aunyx grumbled.

Please tell me that was the last newcomer. I grow tired of sharing my every sight with you, two-legs.

I believe so.

The Queen gathered the five of them around and cleared her throat.

"I will be your master in these lessons. You five will train with me and I will teach you basic sword skills, elementary magic and the responsibilities of being a Rider. My dragon, Firnen, will take your five dragons with him to learn their basic flight maneuvers and work on perfecting their fire, as well as their claw-to-claw combat tactics. At the end of those lessons, we will bring you all together to work on your skills in dragon-mounted combat and mastering your mental connection with each other. Remember, there are too few Riders in the world to fly alone. We will train as one, you fill fight as one. You five are a team, and as such should be supportive of your fellow Riders and work together to master your studies. I will not tolerate any of you leaving to train alone, is that clear?"

There was a unanimous "Yes Ebrithil" from the five of them.

"Good. Then we begin immediately"

A large, brilliant green dragon shook the ground as he landed in the clearing behind them. With a loud, powerful roar, he summoned the young dragons from their hatchery across the clearing. They exited their respective pens and walked over to the group.

Firnen called each dragon forward by name, his deep, booming mental voice reaching everyone so they could all become acquainted with each other's dragons. Aunyx lent his sight to Fenrir so he could see the other Riders' dragons.

Seraphina.

Evalette's shimmering white dragon stepped forward. She had light tints of blue in her wings and claws, as well as her underside.

Rotir.

Icerara's bulky rust-brown dragon stepped forward. It was slightly larger than Seraphina, and had much thicker muscle. He had sand colored wings, claws and underside.

Reneva.

Valeria's pearlescent purple dragon stepped forward. She was about the same size as Seraphina, and her scales shimmered a pinkish-color as the sunlight gleamed off of them.

Eravadir.

Aerin's lime-green dragon stepped forward. He was different from the other males. He seemed stretched out, with a long, slender body. His underside and wings were speckled with yellow and his eyes were bright red, standing out creepily against his otherwise solid green color.

Aunyx.

Fenrir's sight grew black again as his own dragon stepped towards Firnen. He still had not been able to see his own dragon, since it was his eyesight he relied on. It was frustrating. He just stared into his endless black vision and hoped that he had a powerful, large dragon.

As if she knew what he was thinking, Valeria walked towards him.

"Don't worry; your dragon is second only to Reneva"

They both laughed.

She suddenly grabbed him by the wrist. He opened his mouth to say something.

"Oh, don't get excited, I'm just guiding your blind self over to the sparring area, Ebrithil just motioned for us to join her"

He just smiled at his own stupidity and followed her light tug over to the sparring area. Once there, she released him and they listened to the Queen's instructions.

"Alright, we will begin with swordplay. I will pair you with a partner at random. I've already enchanted your swords with a protective spell to make sure you won't kill each other, but do not be mistaken, they will carry a nasty sting so try not to get hit. Evalette, you will be with Icerara. Valeria, you will be with Aerin. Fenrir, you will spar with me. After some time with your partner, we will cycle so you can get a taste for each other's fighting style."

He heard feet shuffling through the dew-soaked grass as the other pairs moved around.

"Fenrir, your sword"

He reached out and a leather-bound grip was placed in his hand. He hefted the weapon in his hand, getting a feel for its weight.

"Show me your ready stance"

He sank into what felt like his normal stance when he and Evalette used to duel each other. He spread his legs slightly and held the sword with both hands in front of him.

He slammed onto his back as his feet were sweeped out from beneath him.

"Wrong. You have no balance like that. Try again"

He got up and assumed the same position, this time moving his feet farther apart and angling his feet slightly.

He fell forward as she hit the back of his knees.

"Again"

He stood once more and this time bent his legs more.

He felt a hard impact on his stomach and doubled over.

"Even with sight, you would never have been able to maneuver your sword to block that"

Again, he stood and this time lowered his sword a little.

"Finally. Was that so difficult? Now, attack me"

He lunged his sword forward, and met empty air as he listened to her easily sidestep the stab and hit him in the arm with the hilt of her sword.

"Do not ever attempt a stab unless you are positive that your enemy is vulnerable"

He was becoming frustrated to say the least.

"Could I try that one again Ebrithil?" he asked.

She sighed and he listened to her step back to her original spot in front of him. As soon as he heard her footsteps stop, he lunged forward as fast as he could. He felt the tip of his sword make contact with her, though where he hit her he didn't know.

As soon as he realized he actually hit her, he felt immensely guilty.

"Ebrithil, I am sor-"

His apology was cut off as her sword pounded him in the shoulder.

"Never apologize to your enemy"

That was all he could take. He swung wildly at her, each time meeting nothing but empty air, until he received a hard slash to his back.

"Do not allow your emotions to cloud your combat"

He remained on his hands and knees, fed up with the training. There were no rules in combat, why should he follow hers?

"Cycle"

He ignored his mother's instructions, choosing instead to steam in frustration.

"Fenrir, I said cycle. Move on to your next sparring partner"

"No"

The Queen waited a few seconds then sighed.

"Combat is never a choice, Fenrir. Icerara, have at him, force him to fight back"

He listened to Icerara's heavy feet stomp over to him.

"Sorry, Fenrir, Ebrithil's orders"

He listened to the rough movement of Icerara's tunic as he raised his arm and prepared to swing. He was thankful that his hearing was naturally enhancing to offset the loss of his sight. He pictured Icerara and how long it would take him to swing his sword.

He envisioned his heavy build. He was obviously built for strength, not speed. He thought back to when he had stabbed at the Queen and tried to imagine how long his sword was. Icerara's sword was probably the same size. He judged from the sound that Icerara had made when he walked over to him that he stood no more than about three feet behind him.

He thought through these details and swung his sword with split-second precision.

There was a clang of metal as he parried Icerara's sword in mid-air. He listened to his gasp of surprise and aimed his own sword towards the sound. He swung, hitting Icerara. Judging from the sound of the air leaving his lungs, he guessed he had hit him square in the chest. Picturing Icerara's towering body, he swung his sword up and over him. The sound of air whistling through the blades of grass told him that his sword was swinging just above the ground. He adjusted his swing and swept Icerara's legs from beneath him. At the sound of his hulking body hitting the ground, Fenrir swung a final time and landed one last blow on his chest.

Fenrir stood there over him catching his breath. He noticed it was now silent. There were no foosteps through the grass, now lectures on proper form, no shriek of metal as the other pairs sparred. There was just silence.

He could practically feel the others staring at him. He threw his sword down and walked towards the edge of the clearing, listening for the faint chirp of birds in the treeline.

He heard a change in the crunch under his feet as it changed from grass to a layer of pine needles. He put his hand out to feel for the inevitable tree and once he had felt it, he turned and sat down, leaning against the rough bark.

Whether what he had just done made him incredible or just a freak, he didn't know, and so he sat alone, listening to the insects scurrying along the ground and the dew dripping through the grass.