Dragon Ping!
Just at that moment, the roar of a dragon reached his ears. Ken smiled. He was fascinated by the creatures. They were so majestic, and powerful!
When he was much younger, his uncle had taken him to see the huge Ke’Karnoss. They had faced the beast in its courtyard. For a time, Ke’Karnoss had stared at them, as if studying their appearance. Then he cocked his head in a distinctive manner, and Uncle Faard had pulled him into the shelter of the dragonshield he was carrying. Flames washed over them, slightly singing his curly hair.
After the flames stopped, he could hear the sound of the dragon’s indrawn breath. He was smelling them.
Faard stood again. “This is my child. You will come to respect him as you do me.”
The dragon spoke then, a growling reverberation within the walls. Ken translated the sound, “I know him now.”
It had been a ritual trial by fire. Dragons, though now considered domesticated, were still ruled by prideful rituals of honor and procedure. Woe unto him who tried to take shortcuts!
His uncle had explained it to him. “They are a proud race. They do not consider themselves to have been conquered. Instead, they behave as though we are their servants. As long as we both play that same game, there is no harm, but any fool who tries to push a dragon around soon gets what he deserves, and it still happens quite frequently.”