"Roar..." Gray Ghost hissed gleefully, gliding like a giant moth before diving into the Dragonpit.
Boom!
An adult dragon landed with a thunderous bang, sending dust flying in all directions.
"Cough, cough, cough..." Baelon choked on the dust, trying to shield himself.
"Roar..." Gray Ghost, indifferent to the chaos, enthusiastically pounced on Baelon, its huge dragon head nuzzling around him.
"Haha, Gray Ghost, stop it," Baelon laughed, unsteady on his feet as the dragon's thick nostrils sniffed him, causing him to fall backward.
Pfft...
Instead of hitting the ground, Baelon landed on the dragon's tail, which had cushioned his fall. For a moment, he froze, running his hands over the delicate scales. Unlike the usual rough and solid dragon scales, Gray Ghost's were fine and dense, light gray diamond-shaped scales that felt as light as seawater.
From afar, Gray Ghost's movements were almost ghostly, hard to distinguish against the background. The dragon's vertical pupils shone brightly as it lowered its head to Baelon, sniffing around to savor the familiar scent it liked so much.
"Gray Ghost, let me up first," Baelon gasped, struggling to breathe under the dragon's weight and slapping its light gray scales.
"Prince!" The Dragonkeeper suddenly ran back, holding his bamboo staff nervously aimed at the dragon.
"I'm fine, really," Baelon said, poking his head out from beneath the dragon's neck and smiling awkwardly. Gray Ghost was always so enthusiastic; it was overwhelming.
"Roar!" Suddenly, a loud and clear roar erupted, filled with thick wariness. Baelon glanced sideways, just in time to see a pitch-black dragon shadow flash past.
Plop—
Accompanied by the clattering of chains, the pitch-black dragon shadow shook off the Dragonkeeper and overwhelmed the defenseless Gray Ghost in one swift move.
"Roar..." Gray Ghost shrieked in shock, hurriedly rolling over and tearing at its attacker.
"Roar—" The pitch-black dragon retreated angrily, its scales cracked from Gray Ghost's bite.
Only then did Baelon see the dragon clearly. Its entire body was as black as night, with scarlet dorsal fins and wing membranes, and a horned crown on its hideous head.
"Iragaxys, you scared me!" Baelon exclaimed, wide-eyed.
"Roar—" Iragaxys held its head high, gazing provocatively at Gray Ghost, unmoved by the silver-haired child.
Gray Ghost climbed up nimbly, spreading its light gray wings in an uncharacteristic offensive stance. Though not as large as Iragaxys, Gray Ghost still outweighed him by more than three times.
"Quiet, Iragaxys!" The Dragonkeeper hurried over, shouting and brandishing his bamboo staff.
"Roar—" Iragaxys glanced over, snorted disdainfully, and slowly slumped to the floor.
Gray Ghost's vertical pupils burned with intensity as it closed its maw, brewing a ball of Dragonfire. Baelon, caught between the two dragons, awkwardly waved his hand at the Dragonkeeper. "Stand back for now, don't disturb them."
The Dragonkeeper looked around, hesitated for a moment, then said, "As you wish, Prince." He slowly retreated, cautiously holding his bamboo staff.
"Roar..." Gray Ghost crept softly, the initial enthusiasm gone, flicking the tip of his tail repeatedly. Baelon looked around and sat down on the edge of Gray Ghost's dragon wing.
"Roar—" Iragaxys glared angrily and moved up to Gray Ghost, making a show of squeezing Baelon out of the way.
Snap! Gray Ghost lashed its tail at Iragaxys' head. Iragaxys instantly behaved, reluctantly settling close to the ground. The bond between the two dragons was deep. Gray Ghost, though timid, had a firm hold over the temperamental Iragaxys.
...
The sudden appearance of the two dragons naturally caught Jeyne's attention. She pulled her two daughters close and asked nervously, "Where are these dragons from?"
"That's Gray Ghost and Iragaxys, a pair of rarely seen playmates," said the older Dragonkeeper, his eyes cloudy and voice thick. "The Prince and Gray Ghost are very close, and Your Grace is aware of this."
"What a great wild dragon! I'm going to see it," Lyanna exclaimed, her eyes glowing. She clamped her armpits around Vermax's dragon neck and ran off excitedly.
Since Cannibal and Sheepstealer were tamed, Gray Ghost was the only remaining wild dragon on Dragonstone. The hearts of the childs who had heard about it were filled with longing.
"Anna!" Jeyne tried to stop her, but the mad little girl was already too far gone. The older Dragonkeeper, looking stoic, reminded her, "Gray Ghost never attacks humans, and Iragaxys is stable around it."
Jeyne glanced at Baelon, who was playing among the dragons, and asked in surprise, "The two dragons don't reject him. Why hasn't he chosen one to tame?"
Not to mention that the black dragon was an adult; the light gray wild dragon was also of considerable age. Visually, it wasn't much smaller than Rhaenyra's Syrax. An adult dragon like this could be much stronger than a young dragon hatched from an egg.
The elderly Dragonkeeper frowned, about to reply, but Helaena spoke first, cocking her head. "He wants an adult dragon."
"That wild dragon is already an adult," Jeyne said, her willowy brows furrowing. She didn't understand the age divisions of the creatures.
Helaena blinked, looking down and snapping her fingernails. Jeyne took a deep breath, knowing Helaena was different from the norm, and asked patiently, "Will Baelon tame one of those two dragons when he comes into contact with them?"
After all, it was her future son-in-law, and it was necessary to pay some attention. Helaena sniffed, her beautiful eyes glancing into the distance where she saw Baelon holding Lyanna's hand and touching the pitch-black scales of Iragaxys. Under Jeyne's expectant gaze, she bowed her head and contemplated for a moment. Then, Helaena, momentarily in a trance, brushed her palm over her slightly bulging belly and muttered, "Mother to mother, son to son."
Jeyne was confused and couldn't quite understand. At that moment, both of their attention was drawn to Baelon, and they ignored one crucial detail: the incubation container was emitting white smoke, and the blue dragon egg had quietly disappeared. Along with it, the petite Daenerys was gone too.
...
A Certain Dragon Pit
The tunnel was dark and stifling, and the stench of dragon droppings was amplified by the heat. Daenerys walked against the wall, clutching the dragon egg wrapped in cloth.
Click! Her foot crushed a piece of bone. Daenerys shivered, her already pale face turning ghostly white.
"I'm not afraid, I'm not afraid," she whispered, hugging the dragon egg tightly. "Baelor is above!" She didn't know why she had come, but the roar she heard upon entering the Dragonpit compelled her forward.
Tick! Tick! The tunnel grew deeper, the damp earth smelling fishy. Water oozed from the walls. Daenerys didn't dare look up, struggling to move her feet over the uneven ground strewn with broken bones, which hurt her raw feet.
"Roar!" Suddenly, a sharp, violent roar echoed through the tunnel, reverberating in the enclosed space.
"It's a dragon!" Daenerys' wide eyes stared into the pitch-black depths. A sense of being watched washed over her. Her heart thumped, and she swallowed hard. She was prepared, but she couldn't help feeling nervous.
Boom! A scorching torrent of heat erupted, and a silver firelight flashed in the shadows. Before Daenerys could react, an accident occurred.
"Roar!" A bright silver dragon shadow flashed by, its neck and hind foot chains clattering as it lunged out of the deep pit with tremendous force. Daenerys stiffened, gripping the dragon egg with all her strength. A gust of wind blew past her, and the enormous creature appeared before her eyes.
The silver scales cut through the tunnel walls, whipping up sand and dirt. Daenerys was so mesmerized that she couldn't open her eyes. Through the dust, she could vaguely see a silhouette and a pair of icy vertical pupils towering over her, flashing with a cold aura.
"Ah!" she screamed.
Dragonpit, Great Hall
"Ah!" Lyanna shrieked, her chubby hands covering her eyes.
"Roar!" The vertical pupils of Iragaxys blazed with rage as its sprawled body rose, exposing pitch-black fangs. Lyanna, terrified, scraped a gash on her fleshy arm. She had wanted to play with the black dragon, hugging and rubbing against its scales, but the dragon was not amused.
"Roar!" Iragaxys, intolerant of teasing, brewed dark dragonfire in its throat.
"Quiet, Iragaxys!" Baelon rushed forward, shielding Lyanna behind him, and held out his hand toward the dragon's menacing maw. Iragaxys hesitated at the sound, its vertical pupils showing a hint of confusion as dragonfire tumbled within its mouth.
"Prince, get back!" The Dragonkeepers rushed in, holding their bamboo staffs at the ready.
"No, don't provoke it," Baelon commanded, his small face tense as he locked eyes with the pitch-black young dragon.
"Roar..." Sensing the hostility around it, Iragaxys' anger surged, dragonfire nearly spilling from its jaws.
"No!" Baelon cried out, speaking in High Valyrian, "Stop the dragonfire, Iragaxys!" High Valyrian was the best choice for calming an enraged dragon, though it was a different story with a wild one.
Hearing the command, Iragaxys slowly retracted its dragonfire and lowered its head toward the human child. It had seen Baelon before but had not received a response.
Baelon's eyes flickered as he continued, "Back off, Iragaxys." He had forgotten how commanding High Valyrian could be with a masterless dragon, his desire to tame an adult one overriding his focus.
"Roar?" Iragaxys tilted its head, vertical pupils flashing with intense curiosity.
At once, the atmosphere was tense.
Baelon shielded Lyanna and took a step back, shouting, "Return to the dragon pit, Iragaxys!"
As he shouted, the Dragonkeepers slowly gathered around, raising their bamboo staffs to keep their distance from the dragon. A female Dragonkeeper, the most senior, rasped, "Back off, Iragaxys!"
The young dragons in the Dragonpit were usually short-tempered but obedient, often returning to the pit when ordered. However, this time was different.
Iragaxys stared straight at the human child, confirming that High Valyrian was not wrong, and a fury of being teased surged wildly. People choose dragons, and dragons choose their masters. The dragon felt abandoned and would do everything in its power to retaliate.
"Roar!" Iragaxys raised its head high, its maw brewing dragonfire and spitting it out cleanly.
"No, no, no!" The Dragonkeeper in the way was shocked and shrieked in fear.
The next second, boom—the pitch-black dragonfire engulfed one of the Dragonkeepers, incidentally scorching another, forming a puddle of dark swirls.
"Run, the young dragon is out of control!" The female Dragonkeeper's face changed drastically, and she fled with her bamboo staff. The rest of the Dragonkeepers protected Baelon and Lyanna, retreating backwards.
"Roar!" Iragaxys' retaliation did not stop; it continued to spray dragonfire at the humans.
As soon as the dragonfire was spat out, a violent impact came from beside it. The Gray Ghost's vertical pupils were fierce, and its tail swiped away the black flames, opening its fangs to pounce on Iragaxys. The two dragons tumbled and tangled.
Baelon, stunned, tugged Lyanna, who couldn't walk, to run fast.
"Aaaah!" The two Dragonkeepers initially engulfed by the dragonfire wailed and tumbled in the flames, letting out miserable screams. One suddenly stiffened his body, pulling an obsidian dagger from his pocket, and slashed his neck. No blood spurted as the wound burned instantly, but the carotid artery snapped, ending the Dragonkeeper's suffering.
...
Dragon Pit
"Ah!" Daenerys let out a shriek and instinctively closed her eyes. However, the imagined pain did not come.
"Roar..." Scorching hot airflow sprayed on her face, as if a smooth iron plate was grinding against her body. Daenerys quietly opened her eyes and her expression changed.
A handsome dragon with a shiny silver body, its neck and hind feet wrapped in chains, sniffed in her arms for a while. Staggered slightly, the giant silver dragon's vertical pupils opened wide, gazing icily at the silver-haired girl. Slowly, it kept closing the distance.
(Word count: 1,963)