Read Dragon Trials (Return of the Darkening Book 1) for Free Online Page A

frustrations. There was no one else I could really talk to. The other trainees, such as Beris, were too cruel, too eager to make a joke of everything. My brothers were busy with the training of the young dragons, and Prince Justin was the only one apart from my brothers who knew me well, or who at least knew me from my early years.
    “It’s Sebastian, my partner. I’m…worried for him, quite frankly,” I said in a rush.
    “Worried for him?” Prince Justin frowned. He sounded as if he thought perhaps I worried for my own place, and I didn't.
    I pulled out an arrow. “He’s not like the others. He’s strong enough…he is a blacksmith’s boy, as you must know. But he doesn’t know how to use that strength. He’s had no training, no horsemanship, no fencing, and no skills.” I let out a sigh. “He is affecting both our chances of doing well in the tests. What if we let everyone down?” This worry kept me up most nights. “What if he fails? Or worse…if he is unable to do all that a rider must to get our dragon back to Mount Hammal safe after every ride.”
    The prince pulled out his arrow and handed it to me. “Remember, Thea, it was the dragon that chose both of you. I’m sure that the boy will pick up what he must. He’s probably just a late bloomer.” He smiled reassuringly at me, again with that crooked twist of his mouth that made it seem as if he knew more than he was saying. “I’ll be keeping an eye on your progress. I can’t wait to see another Flamma up in the skies with us. Try not to worry so about your partner. Trust that your dragon knew what it was about.”
    “Yes, my…Justin. I’ll try.”
    He touched a finger to my cheek. “You do that. Now I’ve got to go to some ridiculous ball tonight, so I must be off. My father tells me I spend too much time with my dragon, and not enough with my other duties. But I’ll tell Ryan and Reynalt you’re still as wild as ever.” He gave me a grin and set off across the practice ground, his long legs taking him away all too fast.
    I watched him until he vanished into a doorway that led to out of the Academy and along the road back into the city, where the king’s castle stood. It was good to see someone who had once known me, and to be friends again, after so long. But did Prince Justin really have any idea of how hard these tests were going to be for me with Sebastian in tow?

6: How to Find Your Way
    I picked up my staff and gave the edge of the wall a few experimental jabs to try and get the hang of what Thea was telling me. Behind me, she was already rummaging about in the weapons shed, leaving me to try and figure this out.
    Just raise it a bit higher…and… I jabbed the edge of the wall. The shock of impact traveled down my forearms as if the thing was alive, making me drop the staff. It felt a wiggling snake.
    “Can’t even win against an inanimate object,” one of the other boys muttered. Stooping, I grabbed the long stick and looked up to see Beris. Next to him, Shakasta was trying to stifle his laughter. The two shook their heads and filed into the keep’s kitchens.
    I coughed, standing up with my cheeks burning.
    “Maybe they’re right. Maybe I should just give up now,” I muttered to myself, inspecting the grazes on my knuckles and the bruises on my forearms. What do I know about fighting? Who’d ever heard of a peasant from the streets becoming one of the Dragon Riders of Torvald, famous throughout the realms? I’d never twirled a fighting staff before I had come here. I could pound a hammer and chop with an axe, but with this staff, I seemed to become nothing but thumbs and wrong moves.
    I kicked the dust, scuffing the new, simple leather boots the instructors had given me. All my clothes were new, with a brown tunic and trousers, and a leather jerkin that did nothing to keep the bruises from forming. Even wearing the same clothes I still looked out of place compared to the others who all came from noble families. Somehow