The sun had set and the camp was settling down for the night. Ever since the storm blew through, it had been cooler. Not enough to make staying out impossible. Heavy clothes were still enough to keep the sentries alert. Still, no one would be out in the chill when they could be wrapped up in blankets instead.

  Which was why it was odd that Rina wasn’t in their tent.

  Moving briskly helped, at least. Aytin strode purposefully through the camp, edges of his coat flapping slightly. He tucked his wings in tighter, though, and wished for something to cover them. A greatcoat or even just a big blanket.

  Some of the wildlings had said that in a month or two it might get cold enough for water to freeze. For someone born in the southern latitudes, that was hard to believe. The only ice he had ever seen had come from frost powder. Having it fall from the sky? That was just wrong.

  For now, the weather was at least livable. Even nice. During the day anyway. Moving the camp hadn’t even been all that much of an ordeal.

  Without being forced to walk, Aytin and the majority of the wildlings had ranged ahead to prepare. They had found a thick grove of trees about a short flight away from the keep and behind a small hill. The ground underneath the canopy’s protection now played host to a mixture of canvas tents and leather-lined lean-tos, including a particularly large construction that the wildlings had insisted on building for Faelon.

  The dragon had barely remarked on the shelter before collapsing in it just hours before. He had pushed himself hard to make the trek, only spending a single night camping in the forests. Plenty of food and an escort that knew the local skies had done a lot to speed the journey along. Even the language barrier hadn’t been much of an issue.

  For that last, Aytin was especially thankful. He had only needed to speak to the dragon a few times during their trip, and each one had been brief. Faelon had spent most of the journey with only a few wildling scouts for company while his companion coordinated with their new allies. Getting the camp set up had been hard enough, but distributing the weapons turned out to be more of an ordeal than expected.

  The cache had started with six bows. Including the one looted from Juniper’s remains and passed on to Attalee, that made seven composite bows total. He had distributed them among the huntresses, although he made certain that they understood only Rina and Attalee received theirs as gifts. The rest were property of the tribe.

  There weren’t nearly as many crossbows. Plenty of ammunition for them, but most of them had probably been with the guards who died fighting the brigands. Only four were in the cache and those had prompted nearly as much interest as the regular bows. Or, they had after he used one to embed an iron-tipped bolt into a tree trunk.

  At close range, they were just as powerful as the bows given to the huntresses. And with the help of a cocking lever, almost anyone could use them. A huntress might be able to loose arrows far faster, but that didn’t dissuade the males who coveted the weapons.

  In addition to the bows, everyone got some part of the bounty of steel inside of the cache. Most received knives and spearheads. A few wielded axes or hammers, tools repurposed into weapons of war.

  And while Aytin made it clear that these, too, belonged to the tribe, he also dropped hints that the brigands would be carrying steel weapons. Steel that would be free for the taking once the battle was over.

  Unfortunately, as the bringer of the weapons, he was also seen as the expert in their use. Even the huntresses came to him for advice for things like mounting their new broadheads or proper draw length on the composite bows.

  He gave what help he could. In fact, he surprised himself with the details he managed to dredge up from memories of training with Stonar and his own archery practice. The basic drills and weapons maintenance he had done that spring and summer two years back were especially useful. But too often, he just didn’t have an answer.

  And if it wasn’t questions about using the weapons, it was ones about where to site the camp? What kind of shelters to build? When the brigands would return? How to use the new carpentry tools? If they should have venison for dinner or hunt for wild boar instead? The never ending tide of questions was beginning to weigh on the very young dragonette.

  Still, he could have made time for Faelon. Or at least spent the night with the dragon. A flight to his camp wouldn’t have strained Aytin’s newly healed wings.

  No, distance or schedule wasn’t the problem. It was Faelon’s accusation of Rina manipulating him. Whether it was jealousy or bitterness or some vindictive streak he had never revealed before, it didn’t matter. Aytin knew the truth.

  But every time he thought about the dragon, those words rose to the forefront of his mind.

  Avoiding his companion hadn’t been hard. Not with working wings. And he and Rina had just so happened to pitch their tent at the edge of camp opposite to the massive awning being constructed for Faelon.

  They had shared it the night before. If the canvas walls had been too thin for anything more than sleeping, he found simply being so close to someone else comforting. Rina’s slow breaths, her warmth beside him, the quiet beat of her heart. It was… he really couldn’t describe it.

  But now she was missing, and Aytin was starting to get… not worried. The huntress could take care of herself. Much better than he could, for that matter. No, he was at most concerned, and maybe just a little annoyed. Which was why he was stalking around the camp when he should be asleep.

  A figure sat huddled near a low campfire, no doubt on watch. While she was bundled against the cold, her short, stocky figure gave away her identity.

  “Hi Ness,” he said, softly so as not to wake anyone sleeping nearby. “Have you seen Rina?”

  “Hmm? Oh, hi Aytin!” She was just as quiet, but somehow her tone was bright. “Yeah, she went out hunting with Verk and Drav.”

  “Hunting? With Drav?” He was one of the supporters of Cue that he had insisted on including, but the wildlings had the same dynamics as the rest of the world as far as hunting was concerned. Males just didn’t have the strength or stamina for it.

  “Yeah. He’s just going along to carry stuff,” Ness explained. “It’s a good night for it, so they shouldn’t be gone much longer. You want to wait for them?”

  “Sure.” There was plenty of room on the log, and neither one of them took up much space. He settled down and warmed his hands over the coals.

  It was a still night, and patches of stars shone through breaks in the canopy. If there had been any light, it really would have been perfect for hunting. As it was, the moon wasn’t even half full. He’d hesitate to even fly out there, in case he found a tree with his head or a wing.

  That made the trio’s night hunt strange. ‘Ness doesn’t seem worried, though. Maybe they train for this? But we never had night hunts back home, I’m pretty sure.‘

  He noticed that the young huntress was staring at him. He cocked his head and flicked an ear in silent question.

  At the invitation, she ventured, “Can I ask you something?” Her deference was surprising after how familiar they had gotten, but his position had shifted since returning with the volunteers. They hadn’t had a chance to talk since then, either.

  This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

  “Everyone else has, so why not you, too?” Then he winced as he realized how bitter he sounded. “I’m sorry. It has been a busy day. Please, ask.”

  “You and Dragon Faelon, what… what’s it like where you’re from? Do you have more things like this?” She touched the new knife she wore on her belt.

  “It’s very different. And, yes, we do have a lot more things made of steel.”

  “It must be so easy for you,” the young huntress sighed, wistfully.

  “Easy? No, it isn’t really easy.” Even as he said it, he remembered his struggles with simply surviving on this island. And he had to admit, being the son of a noble was a far stretch from toiling in the mines.

  “I guess it is easier,” he admitted. “But we have much to do.”

  “How? With all of your tools and tents and clothes, what is there to do except sit around and tell stories all day?”

  “Make all of those things, for one. A knife like that one,” he pointed to the one at her hip. “It would take my older sister Suuie hours to make it. But that doesn’t include all the time to dig up the iron, melt it into steel, and gather the fuel for the fire. Lots of work for just a knife.”

  “Oh.” It was hard to tell in the dark, but he thought she might be looking at where Faelon slept.

  “Did you think that all of this came from dragons?”

  “That was what Companion Cue said.”

  “Ah.” That explained a few things. And he would have to be careful about how he answered if he wanted to stay truthful without stepping on the shaman’s tail.

  “Dragon Faelon was given these things by dragonettes honoring him,” Aytin said, carefully. “He did many things to help people before traveling here. But dragonettes made it all.”

  “I did wonder why a Dragon would have so much he couldn’t use. Like, why would he need a bow?”

  Aytin had a fleeting image of the enormous red drawing a bowstring back with his teeth, laminated bow staff pinched between two massive claws, and nearly burst out laughing. “I don’t know,” he answered, once he was certain he could keep his voice steady. “Dragons have other people to help them with things like that.”

  “Dragons?” She latched onto that word. “You know others? What are they like?”

  “None as well as Dragon Faelon. I’ve only met a few when they visited my home,” he explained.

  Ness still seemed fascinated. “Why did they visit? Is your tribe important?”

  ‘This entire conversation is one massive briar patch. I’ve spoken to Rina about back home, but somehow we’ve managed to avoid the subject of dragons.‘

  “We’re a little important. That’s why dragons come. We honor them, and they help us in return.”

  “With Dragon Magic?”

  “Yes. And other things.” When it was clear Ness was waiting for more, he elaborated. “They bring things that we can’t make on our own. And help us fly between islands.”

  “You fly to other islands? More than one?” The young huntress’s eyes went wide and her ears pricked. “Wow.”

  Taking the opportunity her astonishment presented, Aytin asked, “Can you tell me about this island? I’ve only seen a little, and my home is very different.”

  “What do you mean? How is it different?”

  ‘Gods, she’s almost worse than Saza with all her questions.‘ He had to struggle not to sigh, but he was still just a little short when he said, “It just is. But, how big is this island? How far to the northern edge?”

  “Half a day’s flight,” she said with a shrug. “Less if I push. But it isn’t part of our land.”

  “Why not?” Aytin pressed.

  “Other tribes live there.”

  “Other tribes?” This was the first he had heard of other tribes of wildlings. “Where? How many?”

  “Uh, three or four? I don’t know where, exactly. North and east? We only see each other at the midsummer conclave.”

  “Which was months ago.” They were already past the solstice. “Could you find them?”

  “Maybe, with a few days of searching. But their tribes move more than ours.”

  Aytin grimaced. A few days of searching. Then negotiations, only this time without a cache of supplies as a bargaining chip. He might be lucky to get a handful of huntresses to help out of curiosity more than anything.

  Worse, they were almost out of weapons to arm them with. At first, the cache had been like a bottomless toybox, but Faelon hadn’t been out to arm a Royal Guard garrison. He was a trader, only carrying his crew’s weapons and whatever he might sell to the keeps along his route.

  And if he went off searching for reinforcements, the wildlings already committed to the cause would just be flying in circles.

  “No chance of more help for Faelon, then,” he muttered.

  “Oh. No, I guess not.” Ness was quiet, before her teeth flashed in the firelight. “Dragon Faelon doesn’t need more help, anyway. We’re plenty! Especially with all of his gifts!” She brushed her knife, almost reverently.

  They had an edge in numbers and would definitely have surprise on their side. Whether that would be enough to make up for a dragon in the air remained to be seen. As it was, they would be on the knife’s edge.

  But he smiled and nodded, all the same. “Of course! More will just be easier.”

  “Then we would have to share!” Ness’s reply reminded him that this particular wildling was even younger than he was.

  ‘Maybe Attalee is more right than she realizes?‘

  The faint beating of wings forstalled any further conversation. Ness was up in seconds, spear in hand. Its new steel head was so polished that it caught the faint glow of the embers in the firepit.

  “Hey, Ness. You caught watch tonight?”

  At the unseen female’s voice, the young huntress visibly relaxed. “Yeah, Verk. Hopefully not for too much longer, though.” She glanced up at the sliver of moon just visible through the trees. “Any luck?”

  “Plenty.” There were more wingbeats and thumps behind her as the rest of the hunting party landed. Aytin tossed some brush on the fire and as it flared up he could see that all three returning dragonettes were weighed down with heavy bundles. “We found a herd of deer bedded down and took a buck. We might have gone for two if there were more of us, or Drav wasn’t so lazy.”

  “What does that mean?!” the wildling in question demanded.

  “She’s joking,” Rina assured him, walking up to the fire. Then she caught sight of Aytin. “Oh, hey! I didn’t think you’d still be awake.”

  She stepped forward for a quick nuzzle, which he returned. “I didn’t know where you were.”

  “I thought I told you that I was going hunting tonight?”

  He honestly couldn’t remember her telling him that. “Maybe? I was very busy.”

  “Well, I brought you something.” Rina held up a bundle of fur, and it took a second for him to recognize it for a rabbit in the flickering firelight. “You must be getting tired of deer. Sorry, venison.”

  “Ha, ha,” he deadpanned. “But thanks. I think I had some wild boar at the feast, but that was… I guess that was three nights ago? It seems longer.”

  “You’ve been busy,” she repeated. “So I’ll make us breakfast in the morning.” After a pause, she sheepishly asked, “Could I borrow some salt?”

  “Sure,” Aytin replied, automatically. Then Faelon’s question replayed unbidden though his head. ‘Why you? What does she want?‘

  He shook himself. ‘I’m being stupid. It’s just some salt. Hells, of course I want salt on my food!‘

  Still, the thought nagged at him as he extended a hand for the rabbit. “I’ll help clean it.”

  She passed him the kill and then went over to hang the venison from a nearby tree.

  He expected to find its neck broken from a snare, but it felt wet in his hands. Upon closer inspection, there was a neat hole at the base of the rabbit’s neck. A perfect hit, difficult at the best of times.

  “How did you kill it?”

  “My new bow!” Suddenly realizing that most of the camp was asleep, Rina cut herself off. More quietly, she hissed,” It’s amazing!”

  “Sure, but it’s just wood and horn. You still have to be able to see the rabbit to hit it.”

  Understanding dawned. “Oooohhh. No, I can see in this.” She motioned to the night sky. “It’s my magic.”

  “It’s why I’m always getting pulled into these night hunts. Sometimes I wish I was born with some other talent,” Drav grumbled.

  All three huntresses snorted at that. Verk even gave him a little shove. “You seem happy enough to take your share of the skins.”

  He recovered and shot her a dark look. “Yeah, I just said sometimes.”

  “When you’re being lazy.”

  “You caught me sleeping one time, Verk. One. Time. When are you going to drop it?”

  “When it stops being funny. So never.” They all shared a giggle at his expense.

  “Maybe you could have Aytin get Dragon Faelon to ask her to stop,” Ness suggested.

  It was obviously a joke, but Drav looked horrified at the suggestion. He was relieved when Aytin shook his head. “This isn’t a thing I want to get involved with. But,” and he added the last with an evil grin. “If you want Faelon’s help, you can just ask him yourself.”

  That was more than the other dragonette could take.

  “I… uh… no. No!” Drav frantically shook his head. “I, um, I think that Dragon Faelon… well, he has to have better things to do than talk to me. Right? Not that I would-“

  Having just returned from hanging the venison, Rina clapped him on the back and interrupted his babbling. “Then I guess you’ll have to live with Verk’s jokes, won’t you?”

  That prompted another round of giggling, which only intensified at Drav’s heartfelt sigh.

  “Anyway,” she said, turning back to Aytin and giving the hapless male a reprieve. “Yes, the three of us can all see in the dark. It makes it easy to find deer and pigs, if you know what to look for. They are all out at night, not sleeping or hiding.”

  Something about that bugged him. “Does anyone else have the same magic?”

  “Sunny,” she replied, naming one of the other huntresses in their contingent. “And a few others in the tribe who aren’t here. It’s a common one.”

  Aytin knew a few dragonettes with the same ability, but it wasn’t nearly so common back home. He also made a note to try and find out what the other wildlings could do, even if he had to throw around his weight as Faelon’s Companion.

  But in the meantime, having so many dragonettes who could see in the dark of night gave him the beginnings of an idea.

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