Page 52 of Shadowborne: Reckoning

It was necessary to remind him we were soldiers, on a mission, and this wasn’t the time for celebration. He settled quickly, but his feet shifted and he kept looking back over his shoulder, obviously eager to return and try again.

“Tell me what you learned for certain,” I asked, after determining he would focus better if we debriefed before we flew.

“They don’t trust humans—any of us,” Benji said without hesitation. “They like me, but they’re scared.”

“Of you, or of Kgosi? Or someone else?”

Benji shook his head, his brow furrowing in frustration. “That’s the hard part. They show me images, but they’re places I don’t know. I just see dragons—so I suppose they're afraid of other dragons? Maybe that the other dragons won’t like them if they talk to us? Or maybe that the dragons warned them away from talking to people?”

It was a child’s perception, but I linked with Kgosi to get his measure of it.

‘He doesn’t have it, but he also isn’t wrong. He’s shared some of the images with me, and the sensations of fear are associated with the other dragons… but not pinpointed to them. I’m sorry, Donavyn. Without reaching them myself, I cannot be certain. Benji shares what he knows and is familiar with—it is filtered through his mind and senses.’

Frustrating, but understandable. Even Bren and I had to work to share more than words in the link—it was much harder to give the fullness of the experience the dragons shared. And Benji lacked both life experience, and time with the dragons to have learned how they perceived the world. He’d never bonded with a dragon or experienced life alongside them.

Still, he’d gathered more than I could have.

“Did they offer any insight into why they stay so close together and don’t fly away?”

Benji’s frown deepened. “They tried. But even though they were patient, every time I asked the question, even from different dragons, the answer was the same. An image of themselves in that place… as if that was an explanation.”

‘Is it odd that feral dragons don’t know how to speak with humans? Or is that to be expected?’

‘I am not surprised,’ Kgosi shared. ‘When a Wild One joins the herd, there is always an adjustment period, especially with the humans. They haven’t developed the skill with your language. But I am more surprised that these, who do have connections with humans, and who communicate with Carnage who knows us so deeply, struggle in this way… it is all very worrying and makes me consider that they may have been kept ignorant intentionally.’

‘To stop people like us from reaching them?’

‘That’s the part that worries me,’ Kgosi sighed. ‘No dragon herd should feel threatened by connection with humanity. We are different, but built for each other. And even those who do not choose riders should have a sense of that. These dragons, as Benji describes them, seem to lack… fullness.’

I frowned. ‘Fullness? Of what? Are they less intelligent?’

‘I don’t believe so. But until I speak with them directly, I can’t be sure. Donavyn, I don’t mind telling you that it is worrisome to me. I do not feel peace to intervene. And yet, it seems like I must if they will not open to little Lionheart. I will continue to seek the Creator on it.’

‘You can force them to speak if you choose to, right?’

‘I could. But it would be an offense to them, and their Primarch, and create a challenge for dominance if I ever met him. I’m not yet sure it’s wise to risk that.’

I slapped my dragon’s leg. ‘I’m certain you could take him if you needed to.’

‘Of that, I have no doubt,’ Kgosi sent, ruffling his wings as if he were mildly offended that I’d imply otherwise. ‘But I do not wish to punish another dragon for the missteps of man. A strong Primarch could not leave me to intervene in his herd and retain dominance. He must challenge me.’

That did make me uneasy. ‘With the herd here to back him up… I wouldn’t like to put you in that situation.’

‘The other dragons would not intervene. That is not what concerns me.’

I frowned. ‘If you went for their Primarch, they wouldn’t fight for him?’

‘In battle, certainly. But not in a challenge for dominance. No dragon can win dominance if he requires the strength of others to uphold him. When they hear a challenge called, my kin will remain back to watch and herald the winner. Which would be me, of course. But even in that, there would be challenges if these poor souls don’t wish to join us in Vosgaarde. No… there are many reasons to have caution, Donavyn. My safety is not one of them, however.’

I stifled a smile at the sense that came with Kgosi’s words, of a compassion for the poor fool that would be forced to fight him.

But there was grief there, too, and I felt it growing in him.

‘What would it really mean, Kgosi? Why are you sad?’

‘I grieve the thought that I may need to invade their minds in that way. It is the last resort.’

‘But why? You could reassure them, and show them there’s no need to be afraid.’