My gaze meets the firm stare of the beast standing before me. Its slitted pupils surrounded by a bright red iris. I look away and instead focus on examining its body. The beast is about twenty feet tall. It has black, iridescent scales covering its body. Its wings are wide and strong, probably from the years of flying. And the tail, long, and curving to a nice, pointed spear tip. It’s so captivating, a beauty. Yes, a fine, beautiful creature, yet that tail can be deadly, actually, the whole beast is lethal. That is what this creature is used for, to kill and wage wars. I gulp and take a deep breath.

It’s now or never. I have to be able to do this. If I don’t then… no, I don’t want to think about the consequences of not obtaining my dragon-riding license. I have to be able to do this. I have been practicing for almost a year.

“Are you ready?” The officer asks. With the question he draws me from my thoughts. He is dressed in all black leathers and has an exasperated look on his face. This is probably not how he expected his life to go. He probably thought he would be riding a dragon and fighting in the front lines. Instead he is here, overseeing 16 year olds riding dragons and providing them their dragon-riding license.

“Um, yes, sir,” I reply quickly.

“Alright, just mount the dragon and you can begin the obstacle course. You will be judged on speed and maneuvering. As well as the mounting and unmounting of the dragon. You will be allotted 2 minutes to attempt the initial mount. If the two minutes are up and you have not yet mounted the dragon, you are automatically disqualified. Do you have any questions?”

“No, sir”

“Very well, you may begin.” He presses a button on his timer, indicating the beginning of the 2 minutes, so I sprint towards the dragon, urging my nerves to melt away with each step.

Here we go…

This is all I have for now. Feel free to leave feedback. Thanks.