Page 95 of The Infirmary for Dragon Burns and Midair Mishaps

He held his arms out for Nisse to measure his wingspan. “Let’s go with the works. I wouldn’t mind a new helmet and gloves.”

“We’re also trialing a new lightweight shin guard design if you’re interested,” Nisse said.

Vaela leaned over and stared into a nearby bucket. “We’re running low on spit.” She eyed me. “Want to help me with this?”

I nodded, following her back up the ladder, the giant metal bucket held between us. We closed the hatch, replaced the carpet, and exited the storeroom, cutting through the back door to the woods located at the edge of the infirmary.

As we slipped between a pair of evergreens, we found a familiar, worn path, following it deeper into the trees.

“Hey, watch it!” a voice called in the distance. “I felt that bloody fireball skimming my head!”

A rumbling sound like a chuckle issued from between the trees. Vaela and I pressed on down a path, coming to a clearing in the woods where Min and Dalton were testing out some newer armor prototypes, doing quality control on the fire resistance.

“We have come for spit!” Vaela called, lifting her side of the bucket.

Min looked pleased to see us, rushing over to greet Vaela with a chuff that sent steam curling the dark hairs at her temples.

Vaela gave her snout a good rub as we dropped the bucket at her feet. “Fill ’er up, please.”

Min stared at the bucket, sucked in a whistling breath, gargled, then produced a wad of saliva. It splashed into the bucket, ricocheting everywhere.

Vaela winced. “Okay, gross and unnecessary. What did we say about being gentle?”

Min nudged her, making a disgruntled sound, and Vaela staggered, laughing. “I’m just kidding. Yes, I know this spit is saving lives across Cai’amar.” She patted Min’s snout. “It’s very nice spit.”

Something suddenly rustled in the blackberry bushes that surrounded the clearing, and we all jumped.

“The armor,” I hissed. Dalton darted for the prototype, scrambling to hide it.

Min made an odd sound, tilted her head, then surged toward the bush, her forked tongue poking at something. She stuffed her head into the leaves. When she pulled it back out again, she dragged some small, squirming thing with her.

Min deposited it on the ground. She lifted her head, and sitting there on the forest floor was a pudgy little dragon, no taller than my knee. The dragon rolled onto her back at the sight of us, kicking her tiny legs, clearly used to humans.

Vaela cooed at the dragon, stepping closer. She pawed at Vaela’s outstretched hand like a puppy.

“Aren’t you a little menace,” she said, voice filled with affection.

“Careful,” Dalton said, coming over to inspect the baby dragon. She got a hold of the laces on his boot, tugging until he laughed.

“Oh, she’s harmless,” Vaela said. “Still has her baby teeth. And her wings aren’t even developed.”

“What kind of dragon is she?” I asked, inching closer.

“She looks like a Half Moon, doesn’t she?” Vaela said, crouching down to rub her scaly belly. One half of her body was dusky blue, like the night sky. The other half was an off-white shade; her scales glittered like they’d been inlaid with precious stones.

“I’ve never seen a Half Moon in these parts,” Dalton said. “Aren’t they usually up North where it’s cold?” He poked her pudgy little belly and the dragon suddenly changed color, mimicking the brown shade of his boot.

I blinked down at the sight. Incredible.

“This one seems to like it down here,” Vaela said. The dragon rolled around at Dalton’s feet, pawing at him for attention. He grinned, playing with her, curling his fingers back to avoid her nipping teeth.

“And she’s obviously a fan of people,” Vaela noted. “Which means someone’s clearly been feeding her.”

“What do we do?” I asked.

Min made a sound that was almost concerned. She nibbled at the sleeve of Vaela’s tunic, tugging a bit. The baby dragon changed color again, turning the exact same shade as Min’s silver scales.

Vaela sighed. “I suppose we can’t just leave her out here. If she’s already grown used to humans, she won’t fare well alone, especially if she runs up against a wild dragon.”