“Hey kid, want a better life?”

  It was a day like any other when a strange man approached him. The boy was somewhat known in the underground for all the odd jobs he did here and there. At first, he thought it was just another request to either steal something or spy on someone.

  Yet once night fell, the man took him to an empty Block. For a moment, all the boy could think of was ‘Ah, so I’m finally dying tonight’. But then they showed him a dragon, saying one of the ringleaders wanted him in their races. And that ringleader was no one other but the great Jackal.

  The boy thought there was no reason why he shouldn’t accept it, even though he had never ridden a dragon before. Best-case scenario, he would have some money, and in case he failed and pissed that Jackal off, he would either die or be back to where he was.

  He later received a black crystal and clean clothes.

  Then they arranged an entire room, just for him.

  And on the next day, Jackal started to send him instructions and schedules for his training with the dragon. The ringleader kept saying the boy was a natural. That he would be one of their biggest treasures. At the beginning, the boy thought Jackal was quite over their head. But then he started to practice and get better.

  And he realized riding dragons was fun.

  The dragon they had given him was also somewhat young, from what Jackal had said. He was a bit over five years old, a wingless dragon with a soft blue mane. From what the boy had gathered, they were having difficulties matching the dragon with the other riders, as the creature wouldn’t let anyone touch him. But perhaps because the boy was younger than most, the dragon didn’t have many issues with him.

  No one said the dragon had a name, so the boy named him Blue. At first, he dealt with Blue like he dealt with all his other requests—an odd job. Yet as they trained together, more and more the boy found an odd comfort in the creature. A calmness he had never felt around any other person.

  However, since he heard people saying how they would likely replace Blue with another dragon, there was no reason to get attached to the animal.

  In six months, Jackal put up a debut race for him. The boy was almost certain that was a test—something to check his abilities, and if he would be one of the official riders or be sent away. Regardless of the result, the boy was content. He had been fed throughout those months and didn’t have to deal with people anymore.

  It was only him and the dragon, most of the time.

  Still, the thought of losing all of that made him…

  …feel…bad.

  “This is just your first race, kid. I will also send you instructions, to make sure you look good. So no need worry that much.” Jackal’s voice came from the radio in his ear, the ringleader’s voice deep and distorted. Like a benevolent monster.

  “…sure.” It was all the boy replied.

  Once the race started, it didn’t take long for Jackal to start giving orders to him. Yet the boy realized most of his orders were more tips or insights regarding others’ positioning and what he could do to surpass them.

  “Krista is flying in your direction. Unless you want her to surpass you, her dragon needs to be delayed.”

  The boy didn’t need Jackal to warn him about Krista—he could see her and the two-legged dragon from the window’s reflection.

  He held the reins tighter in his hands; heart racing as if it was about to burst.

  “I…want to win. You want to win as well, don’t you, Blue?” The dragon’s ear twitched, the creature still flying lower than most of their competitors. “I think we can win if we take them down. Can you help me?”

  That was all the boy said. And, apparently, all he had to say.

  Blue skyrocketed, passing through the empty buildings like a coursing river. Krista and her dragon were right behind them, boosting their speed with bursts of air. Soon enough, Blue would be left behind.

  The wingless dragon bent his body downwards, making the boy hang upside down—in a way that both the boy and Blue were looking straight at Krista and the two-legged beast.

  Then Blue stopped, for only a few seconds, so that the two dragons would clash against each other. Yet Blue snaked his way through the other dragon’s body, while the boy took the opportunity and pushed Krista off the saddle.

  If she had been taller or heavier, that wouldn’t have worked. Yet the boy knew that, even though Krista was at least five years older than him, her frame was quite small. And she had been struggling to stand on top of her saddle for some time, now.

  Krista was hanging by the reins at first, but soon enough her arms gave out, forcing the dragon to dive after her. And by then, the boy and Blue were already gone.

  He didn’t win the race, but he did get third place.

  The boy heard Jackal’s laugh through the radio, his voice almost impressed.

  “I knew I was right about you, kid! Mark my words, you’ll go far in the business.”

  Even though he didn’t care much about being famous, or being the best, the boy felt quite proud. As if he had finally accomplished something big that day.

  When others came to put Blue back in the cage, however, he panicked. The boy heard the men saying how they would replace Blue, especially if he continued to perform average, and they hadn’t won the race. So the boy was convinced they were going to lock Blue and send him away.

  So the boy clung to Blue’s soft mane, feeling his face hot and his eyes burn, and didn’t let go. Only when Jackal managed to convince him Blue was not going anywhere did he let the men take the dragon away.

  The boy never directly asked Jackal if Blue could be his official dragon, yet that was what happened. Before their second official race, the boy had already chosen his nickname and Jackal had already sent him his new mask.

  Albeit to the boy, however, the Jackal did more than simply give him Blue that day. The ringleader recorded and saved that moment as an embarrassing souvenir, one he would show to the boy years later.

  A ‘sweet memento’ of that one time he almost cried, thinking he would never see Blue again.