Countless miles away, the real Ralem was having a rude awakening. He was kissing Arianna-then BAM he was jolted awake to the reality that he was kissing someone’s hand- a man’s hand. “Yuck!” he flopped backwards- tumbled really, he was still tied up- and fell into the hard stone floor.

            Jaydon laughed hoarsely, “You’ve been kissing my hand for the past minute, Rider. Having good dreams?”

            Ralem felt sick. He started wiping his lips with his arm, “Seriously? Why didn’t you wake me?”

            Jaydon made his annoying smirking smile, “You looked like you were having a good dream.”

            “Jaydon I can’t believe you-” suddenly his face cleared, “In fact I was!” Ralem smiled at the thought, “Well there were all these creatures and Arianna was in trouble. And I… I saved her. I was pretty awesome, really, smashing them and stuff. And then she told me she loved me and she kissed me,” his eyes got far off and he made a dreamy smile, “It was an amazing dream. But kind of weird too, like I was not real or something. I was like a ghost. Wait- where are we?” He looked around. They were in some sort of hallway, with one end open to the bustling crowd and blinding sun. Two soldiers in full armor stood sentry in front of them, pikes in hand. They were facing the opposite direction.

            Jaydon looked down miserably, “They’re lowering the cages.” I tried cutting the ropes but my claws aren’t coming out, he added. I’m…I’m not scared, but kind of nervous- in a manly sort of way, you know? Dragons weren’t meant to be in cages. I can’t be in a cage. I just can’t! His eyes smoldered. And they took Tess’ doll she gave me.

            Ralem folded his legs to his chest, his eyes wide and searching. “Cage? You don’t mean the cages?” Then he remembered what the Queen had accused him of. There was a lot worse in store for them than cages.

            Jaydon’s silence said it all.

            The cages Ralem was thinking of were six feet tall and just wide enough for a regular sized man to go cross-legged. Ten of them hung outside of the castle with plaques reading the inhabitant’s wrongdoing. They hung at eye level so that citizens could spit in their faces and throw rotten vegetables and rocks at them. Ralem had seen men waste to literally bones and rags in them, watch the vultures and crows peck their eyes out.

He blocked out Jaydon to have a quick meltdown. I don’t want to die like that! Slow starvation and being made a fool out of! In a cage, like an animal! No! he clenched his legs until his knuckles turned white. He turned to Jaydon, “Do you have any magic dragon stuff up your sleeves? Anything?”

            Jaydon slumped even more, utter despair reading on his face. “Nothing. I’m powerless.” There was a brief silence, then he said in a broken voice, “I’m sorry, Rider. I was supposed to protect you. And just look at where I got us.” He tugged at his ropes hopelessly.

            “No, this was all my freaking fault. I’m the one who told you to fly away from Baroke as fast as you could. But… it’s no use talking about that now. We can and will escape. There’s more planned for our lives. I know it. You’re the great Magnus Ventus Rex, and I’m your Rider. Together we can do anything, right?”

            Jaydon sighed heavily, “Except that I’m not much of anything right now,” he looked down at his bound hands, “I’m just… Jaydon.”

            “What’s wrong with that? You may not look like the Magnus Ventus Rex on the outside, but in here,” Ralem nodded towards Jaydon’s bare chest, “You are the greatest dragon alive. Trust me, friend. The healer told me that the iris mengae will wear off…”

            “We just don’t know when,” Jaydon finished for him, “Listen, I just can’t stand this! I should be roasting all these puny humans alive! I should be laughing as I tear them to bits, feel the rush of hot blood in my mouth as I rip them apart, be making the greatest hurricanes mortals have seen for years. It shouldn’t be like this.” He lifted his hands, showing off the ropes tied around his wrists, “Rope? I could have easily set this on fire, or just sliced it with a claw. This is just…” he made a very rude noise. He lowered his head into his hands, looking at the ground with smoldering eyes. “I don’t know… it just ticks me off.”

            Before Ralem could reply three heavily armed soldiers pounded to their sides, looking like they meant business.

            “No need to have all your armor on for us. We’re unarmed and bound,” Ralem said wryly as they lowered their pikes.

            The soldier with the shiniest armor wiggled his pike at Ralem and the Rider went cross-eyed as it hovered just an inch from his chest. “Do not speak, witch. We know of your tricks. Come quietly or we’ll run you through in a heartbeat. No funny business, green eyes. You are the man they call Ralem, right?”

            Ralem nodded and cocked his head. Someone else had called him that… who was it? He clenched his teeth as the pike dug its head a little in his chest. “Get up, nice and slow.”

            Jaydon growled, his fingers stretching as he tried to form claws.

            The soldier jabbed his pike at the dragon, “You too, you little devil.” The other soldiers shifted beside him, their pikes aimed at the two.

            Ralem slowly pushed with his feet, his back sliding up the stone wall. He eyed the pikes warily. If only I had the power of my dragon! He thought.

            The soldier holding a shield decorated with the Vulnairan lion, dipped his plumed helmet. “Didn’t Sir Lancelot say to keep them unconscious?”

            Ralem and Jaydon made eye contact. Not again! Jaydon was thinking. Did you hear that? Sir Lancelot! He’s my favorite knight! I’ve always wanted to be his squire! Ralem thought.

            “No, no, that won’t be necessary,” Ralem began.

            “Silence!” the knight snapped. Then he turned and whispered to the other knight (which Ralem heard very well) “It’s much easier to make them walk. These are a bear to lug around.”

            Ralem rolled his eyes.

            “Okay, get moving!” the knight prodded the dragon and Rider, pointing to the opening. “Not too fast, hands where I can see them.”

            “They’re tied,” Ralem protested but was met by a sharp poke.

            “I said- no talking!” the knight about screamed under his pointed helmet.

            Ralem rolled his eyes again but led the way out to the warmth of the noontide sun. His eyes throbbed, reminding him that he had been knocked out yet again less than an hour ago. How many times can they knock me unconscious in a day? He thought miserably. He reached out in his mind for Jaydon, his brain working furiously. You have a plan, dragon?

            You’re asking me? You are supposed to be the one with the plan, Rider. Jaydon said coolly, but it was clear he was freaking out.

            Two soldiers cleared the crowd in front of them. Ralem could already see the cages hanging on the wall, swinging grimly in the wind. Creak, creak, the foreboding sound rose over the hum of the crowd. Creak, creak, a cage groaned as the wind breathed on it. A skeletal hand protruded from the bars, the grinning face of a skull leering down at them like, welcome to the party, folks. A bird landed on the skeleton’s shoulder, looking down at them with beady, hungry eyes. Ralem shivered, involuntarily, his dragon sign on his shoulder blade twitching as his dragon side scrambled for ideas, a plan, anything, so that he could survive this. Hr was desperate. Any ideas? He asked himself. His brain analyzed every possibility. If I back flipped right now I could probably nail two of the guards with my feet. Then a good punch to the guy on my right would finish him off… but where could I run? Maybe on the outskirts…  There's no way I'm getting out of this, he realized, I'll get caught either way. And killed sooner if I try.

The cages were close now, so close he could smell the bittersweet stench of its last occupant. The door was open, waiting for him. Instead they nudged Jaydon. "Get in there, devil," the knight demanded, poking at him with the pike. Jaydon growled in answer, his teeth snapping at the knight's armored hand. He was met by a blunt blow from the pike's unsharpened side, almost making him lose balanced. He stumbled backwards, cursing in draconic. Then his fumbling fingers met the rusted iron and his eyes widened.

Seeing their chance, the soldiers advanced, their pikes lowered. "Get in," the leading knight demanded slowly, as if talking to a dog.

Jaydon roared a no, along with calling them every curse word he knew in both English and draconic. His fingers tightened on the bars until his knuckles turned white, his muscular form tensing. They jabbed and jabbed with their pikes. Blood trickled down his heaving chest, and still he wouldn't let go.

For a second the dragon and Rider made eye contact and Ralem could see the fear in his light green eyes. Don't let them take me, Jaydon pleaded, don't let them put me in a cage.

Ralem couldn't take that look. He heaved mightily against the ropes, gritting his teeth against the pain. Then suddenly, a prick of cold steel on his neck.

He swallowed nervously as he felt someone grab his hair and pull his head backwards. A bead of blood trickled down his neck.

Jaydon froze.

"Get in the cage or I slit his throat," the knight growled, his pike not wavering from Ralem's throat.

Jaydon hesitated. The knight pressed a little harder, allowing more blood to make a scarlet trail down the Rider's neck. Whimpering, the dragon ducked his head and slid into the confines of the cage. A soldier made quick work of his ropes before ducking out quickly and banging the door shut.

"No. No, No No!" Jaydon yelled snapping up to heave on the bars. He hit his head on the roof and hissed, bending over so he could somewhat stand. He felt a creak as the cage was lifted out of the shadow of the castle. "No! Rider!" He stretched his hands through the bars, reaching, his face smashed against the steel. He watched as they laughed in his face before poking his Rider away.

"We've got somewhere special for you, green eyes," the knight snickered.

They were taking him away? Nobody takes a dragon's Rider away! Jaydon was furious to the boiling point. He rocked his whole body, swinging the cage back and forth, the creaking sound grating in his ears. In his mind, he was calling for the greatest hurricane of all time. "LET HIM GO YOU WORM INFESTED SNAKE BELLIES!" He roared in draconic, "HE'S MY HUMAN YOU STUPID OVERGROWN BOOTLICKING LOWDOWN GOODFORNOTHING UGLY FAT LILYLIVERED EGGSUCKING SONS OF MOTHERLESS ROACHES!" He kicked the cage, which only rattled his bones. "COME BACK AND FIGHT ME LIKE A DRAGON,COWARDS! I'LL ROAST YOU UNTIL THERE'S NOTHING LEFT BUT ASHES THEN ROAST YOU AGAIN! I'LL TEAR YOU APART, LIMB FROM LIMB AND LET THE BIRDS EAT WHAT LITTLE REMAINS! AS A MATTER OF FACT, I'LL EAT YOU ALL, ONE TOE AT A TIME! COME BACK AND I'LL HELP YOU MEET YOUR MAKER!"

He could hear them laughing as they slipped into the crowds with his captive Rider.

He roared one last thing, this time in English, "I CURSE YOU! I CURSE YOU, FOUL CREATURES! YOU WILL REGRET MESSING WITH THE MAGNUS VENTUS REX! YOU WILL REGRET IT!"

Then he sat down hard, breathing heavily. They would regret it. He would make sure of that.