"I'll be going, the Emperor is expecting me for dinner."
General Atlas nodded and stood to open the door for him. As Tate passed him, he clapped him on the shoulder. "Come back sometime if you feel like it."
Tate smiled at the older man and nodded.
When he opened the doors of the building light burst into his eyes and dragons were everywhere his eyes went. Dragon's and their riders as far as the eye could see.
His feet hesitated to step out into the open yard. It was a place he'd once walked around in with born confidence, now he had no reason to be here. He felt awkward just walking around like he belonged.
However, he didn't have a choice he began walking, not letting his eyes wander too much. He had some great memories here but he also had some sour ones, and he didn't want to run into the people those particular memories were attached to.
"Eh! Tate!"
The voice that stopped him was familiar and one of the very ones he'd been hoping to avoid. Tate plastered a friendly look on his face and turned to the person who had called him. He inwardly winced when he saw not one, not two, but three people he'd rather not see.
Lyran Strait, West Nol, and Ina Smyt and their dragons Kor, Avol, and Junix were looking at him with funny looks on their faces.
"Wow, it's been a while," West said loudly. His voice carried and many people and dragons who had been minding their own business now did a double take. Some of them stopped dead when they saw Tate and others kept on their way, stealing glances back and whispering.
"Yes, I've just returned," Tate answered, the group drew close enough that Tate could have reached out to touch them. The dragons fanned out from behind the humans and almost boxed him in, almost. They left a gap he could leave though, it would not do if it looked like they were truly holding him up.
"Welcome back, why are you here though?"
"Can I not be here?"
"Well, this is the Dragon Corps and it's a place that ordinary citizens can't enter at will. Last I checked you were just an ordinary citizen, am I wrong?" Ina said, her arms crossed over her chest, she was smirking.
"I don't think that's a rule," Tate answered refusing to let them see a reaction from him.
"Hummm," West murmured, "I think it should be, it's not safe for a human to walk around here alone, don't you know that dragons can be dangerous creatures?"
Kor's head snaked forward until the scales on his cheek brushed Tate's own cheek. The red dragon lifted his lips to show off his razor-sharp teeth, its eyes were alight with mockery.
Tate sighed and did something that not many people would dare to do. He put his hand on the side of the dragon's head and shoved it away. Kor had not been expecting that so his neck flew sideways making him look silly. He rounded on Tate snarling.
Tate looked up into the dragon's eyes. Kor was rising up trying to make himself look as menacing as possible. He was a fearsome dragon. He and Lyran had a reputation as a ruthless pair. He'd seen them in action back in the day and he'd categorize them as the kind of beings who enjoyed inflicting pain on others.
"Try me, fire bug." Tate calmly said into the angered dragon's face.
One thing you did not do as a human was insult a dragon, worst to insult a dragon that wasn't your bonded partner, and even worse was to call a dragon a "fire bug" it was a silly derogatory term. However, to dragons it was highly insulting it insinuated that they were small and weak, their fire no stronger than a fire bug's light flashing on and off.
The dragon lunged at him. Tate dodged his teeth just in time but he had forgotten the other two dragons behind him. He bumped into something hard, he felt teeth grab his shoulders on each side, effectively stilling him. Lyran, West, and Ina were staring at him with open hostility now. Their earlier terrible attempt to play like they were happy to see him completely abandoned.
The thing they hated most about this moment was that this ex-rider who they'd always hated had not only managed to dodge Kor's attack but now that he was literally held in the jaws of Avol and Junix he made no reaction. If you were looking at Tate's face instead of the whole picture it would look like he was being bothered by pesky flies, not moments away from losing both his arms at the shoulder.
"I suggest you get on your knees and apologize." Lyran spat.
Tate rolled his eyes at him. "I don't think I want to."
Lyran's face was completely red, and West and Ina didn't look much better. He'd always had the talent for ticking these three off just by existing.
West nodded with his head to Avol and Junix. They tightened their teeth just slightly on his shoulders. Tate couldn't help but wince as he felt many of the teeth slowly break through his skin.
"How about now?" Ina said her face scrunched up in anger and disgust.
He looked at her, "why should I apologize?"
"Don't try to be so arrogant anymore," West bit out, "you're not one of us. You have no dragon, you have no purpose, perhaps we should do everyone a favor and dispose of you for the good of the Empire."
The teeth tightened a little more. Ina chimed in. "That's right, you're just a has-been who drains Imperial resources. What have you done in the last few years, nothing, you just babysat a little commoner."
Even though he was starting to feel a bit of pain that comment made him smile. "Yes, I did do that. That little commoner, as you called her, is about to come a take your spot, Ina, you better watch out."
Ina screeched. "That will never happen, I don't know where you get your arrogance from, Tate Delmont. You are nothing, you have always been nothing. That stupid dragon of yours dying was poetic justice."
Ina's mouth closed, West and Lyran's faces drained of color too. It was one thing to think such a thing and a completely different thing to say it out loud.
At this point, a crowd had formed around them, which is why Tate didn't particularly feel in danger. Most of the people around him were ones he knew, the core of the Dragon Corps did not change swiftly. He saw a few of his former comrades getting ready to step in if necessary. Everyone knew the dynamic of these four, never had it gone too far. A little blood drawn was expected in disagreements between dragon riders.
However, at Ina's comment, the crowd had sucked in their collective breath. Many started murmuring and glaring and none of it was in Ina's favor. As for Tate, his expression had turned truly scary. He reached his right hand over to his left shoulder. The movement caused Junix's teeth to tear his skin even further. He didn't seem to notice that as he put his fingers into the corner of Avol's mouth and with all his might pressed down on the one spot where there was a four-inch gap between a dragon's incisors and his back teeth. It was a sensitive area for a dragon but was hardly ever utilized because who was going to stick their hand in a dragon's mouth?
Avol's eyes widened in discomfort and he detached his teeth and jerked his head away, Tate's fingers got sliced in the process. Junix let go as well fearing the same treatment and stepped away. Kor was still in front of him, his red eyes blazing in fury and defiance.
The reasons these six hated him were many, some justified and some not. One of the justified reasons, from a certain perspective, is what he decided to utilize right then and there. He looked Kor in the eyes and lifted his bloody fingers. Without a word, Tate pointed to the ground. Blood dripped slowly drop by drop as Kor struggled not to give in, but he couldn't break eye contact with Tate.
Almost everyone present knew what was going on, they had all seen this happen once or twice in their time in the Corps. This was an ability Tate had, one that caused many dragons and dragon riders to fear and despise him. Even those who got on well with him would admit in secret that this skill made them nervous and uncomfortable.
Seeing Tate standing like that, blood starting to saturate his shirt and dripping from his fingers reminded a few watching forcefully of the war. They wanted to look away because they didn't want to remember but they couldn't look away from Tate, they had never been able to.
If you asked the members of the Dragon Corps about Tate Delmont they would say that, yes, he was a hero, but they would also say something else. Tate Delmont, was a terrifying monster himself. In the pair of human and dragon that had been Tate and Aquana only the Dragon Riders knew that it was Tate who was the most powerful of the two.
Kor's head lowered bit by bit, he grumbled in audible pain from fighting the force that was making him bow before this human he hated. Tate's eyes were glazed over, maybe from the blood loss, maybe from something else. An eerie smile spread across his lips as the dragon was forced into a posture of submission.
Once Kor's head gently touched the sand. Tate's eyes flashed to the other two dragons. Where Kor's head and been slowly but forcefully put down Junix and Avol may as well have been stomped on by a giant. Their heads were forcefully thrown into the dirt.
Tate looked at the three humans. He took a deep breath and then in a completely normal tone as if nothing had happened he said. "You're right, Ina. I'm nothing these days. I just came to pay my respects to the general and I'll take my leave now. It was nice seeing you all." Tate nodded at the three like they were pleasant acquaintances. He turned and saw the crowd, he acknowledged them all, friend, acquaintance, and enemy alike with the same nod of his head.
He walked through the crowd which had already made a path for him to the gates leading to the city. Almost in a trance the dragons and dragon riders present watched him go. A trail of blood dotted the sandy ground in a line after him. Some of the riders wanted to go after him and check on him, say hello, and talk to him, some were just scared, and some were scowling and thinking "good riddance."
As soon as he passed through the gate the three dragons lifted their heads and stormed off with their humans. The other dragon riders and dragons shook themselves out of their trances and continued with what they had been doing before.
General Atlas watched from his window as Tate left. He sighed, that had not been a very good situation. He was going to have to call those three fools in here before the day was out and ask why they had done something so stupid. Dragon or no, Tate was still the strongest dragon rider in history.
Fools.