Prologue – Betrayal
Thick, bright orange hair, threaded through with daisies and buttercups, danced merrily out behind the little girl as she skipped up the stone stairs. Her tunic and leggings were grass-stained and smeared with mud from her brief moment of play. Scampering up from behind, on oversized and clumsy feet with his tongue hanging out the side of his mouth, came a russet and black striped puppy, a recent birthday present from her father. Running through the large open doors, she raced down the long and wide hall, the soles of her shoes slapping loudly on polished marble floors. Teagan was late, and she hoped her father would not be angry.
Skidding on the floor, she turned to climb the large white and gold staircase. Her own breath puffing as much as the puppy that followed in her wake. Reaching the top, she could see the doors to the balcony were already open and the straight back of her father as he stood looking out on a clear blue sky. He turned at the sound of her steps and bent down, his arms thrown wide and a smile on his face. She rushed into those arms and he picked her up.
“Papa, I’m sorry,” she cried out breathlessly.
“You’re just in time, my Teagan.” He turned with her in his arms and they looked over the lake-filled valley that spread out below them.
Teagan heard the noise before she saw the Riders and their magnificent mounts. The rush of their wings as they powered through the air was a soft whooshing sound, but the cry from their gaping and teeth-filled mouths was loud. It echoed off the steep mountain sides of the lake valley, and she watched in awe as the Riders passed them. Their green leather armor gleamed in the summer sunshine as they bent over the necks of the dragons they rode. As they passed the balcony she was on, they each raised an arm in salute to her father, the General of Riders. Teagan’s heart swelled with pride for her father. All too soon they had passed and were moving out for their mission.
“Papa, when I grow up, I want to be a Rider,” she exclaimed to him.
“My daughter? Just a common Rider? I think not.” He placed her on the ground in front of him, stood at attention and saluted her. “No, my daughter will one day be the greatest of Generals.”
He took her hand gently in his own large one and they walked back inside the citadel. The puppy followed dutifully behind, stopping to sniff at the plinths that lined the corridor, each holding a bust of a past General of Riders. They were just nearing the head of the stairs when they heard a platoon of soldiers coming up. Their burnished helmets gleamed in the light that filtered through the large windows as they ascended higher with their spears all straight and tall and their swords strapped to their sides. Their booted feet sounded loud in unison as they approached the General and his daughter.
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