The rest nodded in agreement.
“Good,” she said. “Now, let’s get this over with.”
Chapter Seven
Most of the base’s personnel were gathered in the stables. This was a momentous occasion, the first dragons going in space. Alex wondered what that meant to the people watching. For most of them, this was the first time they’d ever seen a dragon. What did it matter if they were going to space?
In a small corner of her mind, Alex felt ashamed of being judgmental. It wasn’t long ago that she’d never seen a dragon. Then again, it wasn’t long ago she couldn’t see anything at all. Of course, they should be excited. It would be weird if they weren’t.
Alex knew where the sneaky judgment came from too. She was annoyed. Not with Boundless, not with Brath. Everything that had been said was true. But it still bothered her. What good was an authority like Myrddin or anyone else if you couldn’t trust them?
Trust wasn’t something Alex had ever had a problem with. Her parents had always been straightforward with her. They’d never hidden anything from her or played games. Even when Alex had run off to try to save the nine realms, her parents had invested in the very thing that caused her to make that decision.
Not being able to trust Myrddin or anyone else in charge was a new concept for Alex, and it made her feel extremely unsettled.
She and the rest of Boundless seemed to have had something sucked out of them. This should have been an exciting mission, one most kids would have given anything for. But here were four teenagers, unable to look to the stars with any semblance of joy.
Manny came up behind Alex as she stood in front of Chine’s platform, looking at his augments. She had allowed the maintenance team to take care of them. She wasn’t sure what would be more useful in space. They’d informed her that the dragon’s flames wouldn’t be available due to the breathing apparatus. Machine guns and missiles were also not usable due to the lack of gravity.
At that point, Alex had no idea what weapons were viable, so she left it up to those who knew better and asked to be given a comprehensive explanation of what she had. She wanted to kick herself for not coming to the stables earlier and taking a look at the list.
Manny floated between Alex and the computer terminal. “You guys ready to do this?” he asked with a huge smile on his face.
Alex was certain the smile was genuine. Could Manny be trusted? She stared blankly at the smile. No, not Manny. She’d seen how much he was willing to risk for her and the others. There was no way she couldn’t trust Manny.
“About as ready as you can be to shoot off into space,” Alex answered. “Everything looking good down here?”
“I’m asking the same thing. You guys okay? You look a little distracted.”
Alex glanced over her shoulder at the rest of the riders prepping their dragons and getting ready to leave. “I think we’re just nervous,” she said, regretting lying to him. Maybe she could tell him the truth. Maybe it would be helpful to have someone on their side.
Their side? Are you serious, Alex? It isn’t them against us. We’re all trying to do the same thing—get rid of the Dark One.
Yeah, but some of us are fighting, and others who have the power to destroy entire armies are sitting up in their ivory castles, letting us take all the risks.
Alex knew that wasn’t fair. Myrddin was practically running the whole war effort. Still, thinking about it stung.
All of those worries and fears could be set aside for the moment. Alex pushed them down with everything else she’d been forcing out of her head for the last few months. She knew it was all going to come up at some point—it didn’t take a degree in psychology to figure that out—but it wouldn’t be today. Chine, you ready to do this?
The dragon stood up as smoke rose from his nostrils. Let’s hurry up and take care of this, he growled in Alex’s head. I want to get out of this thing as soon as possible. Tubes in your stomach? Humans have to figure out less barbaric ways to accomplish their goals.
Chine was uncomfortable, and his lizard-like face showed his pain. We won’t drag this out, big guy, Alex said as she jumped onto his back.
Alex attached her anchor and felt her boots connect with the dragon’s back. The connection was stronger than usual. On Middang3ard, Alex could walk around on Chine if she wanted to. That wasn’t going to happen this time. She could tell her feet weren’t going anywhere.
Jollies came through on Alex’s comm. “You know, we’re behind you, right?” she asked. “Everything we were saying, it isn’t about you. None of it. You’re a rider like us.”
“Yeah, I know,” Alex replied. “I appreciate you telling me, though.”
“Brath wanted to say something, but he couldn’t bring himself to. I mean, not to you. He’s been muttering about it to Gill since we’ve started suiting up.”
“What about Jim?”
Jollies didn’t answer immediately. “Uh, he hasn’t really said anything.”
“Are you just telling me that?”
Alex could hear the hurt in Jollies’ voice. “Of course not! I just wasn’t sure what would have been better—if he had said something or he hadn’t. Either way, he hasn’t said anything.”
Alex looked at the open sky above her. “It’s probably better that way. We shouldn’t have any infighting going on. Thanks for being a bigger person than Brath.”
“Not a problem.”
The gnome’s surly voice growled through the comm, “You know, you never disconnected from me, Jollies.”
The pixie squeaked, “Oh, crap! Uh, gotta go, Alex!”
Despite
