Fugitive's Flight (Dragon Castaway Book 2)

Chapter 20

I must say these have been some crazy times for all. Stay safe and enjoy everyone!

Jake took in a deep breath of fresh cold air as he felt the wind pound on his face. It smelled primal, pure, untainted by modern pollution not like the Houston area he'd left behind, or even the more rule areas of the Texas hill country he'd so often frequented. There was a sense of exhilaration in it. Of course, riding on a speeding dragon so close to the ground that it nearly brushed the scraggly vegetation of the region with its claws, probably had a great deal to do with the feeling as well.

"Yeah, this might just be a hunch that's way off into left field, but I'm gonna go with the dragon explanation" he thought suppressing a small smirk as Ragnarök suddenly took a sharp dive and raced through the canyon beneath him at a breakneck pace.

In the past it would have given Jake a heart attack to be screeching along inside of a canyon which, while not narrow, had turns that wound rapidly for the speed at which the pair was racing along. Now however, he just shifted his weight to match the movements of the dragon beneath him, implicitly trusting in Rag's instincts as the pair dodged and weaved through the winding edifice of interconnecting sedimentary brown and red rock that rose high above them in a solid wall.

As the colors streaked by Jake was hit by a sudden wave of happiness coupled with nostalgia, as if he was reliving his days in seclusion with the twins as his companions and only the worry of the next meal to trouble him.

For a brief moment he forgot about the weight of the world, the responsibility of being an Archon or of the forces tirelessly pursuing him. For this brief moment it was just him, his dragon, and the joy of flight. With the ground rushing beneath him and the open sky above him Jake truly felt free, as if nothing in that moment could weigh him down. There were times he truly hoped that he wasn't simply hallucinating in a padded room or something else that would bring him crashing back down into soul shredding monotony.

"Maybe this is all just me being sucked into one hell of a videogame" Jake muttered wryly before promptly dismissing the thought a moment later as Ragnarök banked hard through yet another wind in the canyon. "Nah, if this was GameLit I'd have a harem of overly busty supermodels. Ones who somehow inexplicably lust after me within minutes of our meeting for my exaggerated manly man-ness and non-existent personality."

His thoughts were wrenched back to the present as he noticed a solid shape suddenly rising above him. He looked forward and realized that it was the sheer face of a cliff that marked the end of the canyon.

The dragon beneath him didn't hesitate and opened his wings wide, catching an up draft as he did so. Jake let out a whoop of glee, feeling g-forces seize him as the pair rocketed straight upwards and into the open sky.

"Note to myself" Jake thought as he let out a breath that he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "Never let your mind wander while moving through a tight space at breakneck speed."

"Never thought I'd see the day I'd see you shocked" Wyena call out as she and Valkyrie drew level with him and the dragons began to hover.

"Relish the sight" Jake said his expression turning into a slight smirk that prompted a raised eyebrow from Wyena.

"Why?" She asked slowly.

"Because it's your turn, call it an extreme version of a trust fall, just one where if they don't catch you you transform into a pancake."

"A what fall?"

"Don't worry about that bit" Jake continued as he doubled back towards the start of the canyon. "Just get set up for your Death Star run."