City of Speed by Alex London

Author:Alex London
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.

THE MOON’S SLICE OF SILVER was no match for the blazing neon signs, the blinking billboards, and the flashing lane lights of Drakopolis on a Saturday night. Even in the desolate district where the race would start, the city’s lights outshined anything nature could create.

Abel glided down with Brazza and landed in the middle of the quiet street, waiting for Lu and her wyvern to arrive. When he’d woken Brazza up for the race, she’d nearly bitten his head off. He had to promise he’d spend the whole day tomorrow reading to her if she’d race tonight. With that promise in her head, she got so excited, she flew to the starting line much faster than necessary. Roa and Topher weren’t even there yet.

But that didn’t mean Abel was alone.

A small crowd of nighttime ne’er-do-wells had gathered for the race. Abel recognized some faces in the crowd. There was Shivonne, a hostess at the all-night laundromat-casino in his neighborhood; and there were Sax and Grackle, Red Talon goons who’d happily have turned Abel into dragon feed. There was Jusif, one of the Thunder Wings Abel had betrayed to win his battle last spring; and Ally, Jusif’s boss and Abel’s old homeroom teacher. She’d been fired from their school for being a kinner, harboring stolen dragons, and battling against her own students. If Abel hadn’t won, she might still have her job. He’d probably have been eaten, though.

She waved at Abel when their eyes met. If a wave could say, I hope your dragon splatters you on the pavement like a clumsy toddler’s ice cream cone, that’s what hers would’ve said to him.

Teachers are just like other people, Abel thought. They can be as wretched or as wonderful as anybody else. Sometimes a bit of both. Ally had been a great teacher, but, unfortunately for him, she was a better gangster.

There were spectators in the colors of each of the kins scattered in the crowd. Some had tattoos with the Thunder Wings’ lightning dragon, and some with the Red Talons’ dragon sun, and some with the Sky Knights’ armored infinity symbol. There were even a few whose tattoos matched the symbol on the jacket Abel had put back on, the laughing dragon of the Wind Breakers kin.

It was amazing that no fights had broken out so far, but sometimes curiosity got the better of animosity. Grudges were put aside in the general excitement to see two kids race.

There were also regular civilian-type people, some of whom were probably Dragon’s Eye agents themselves. Eager-eyed gamblers stood next to tired-looking panhandlers and late-night preachers and shift workers on break from the loading docks. There were Saturday-night partiers who’d probably just followed a rumor from one nightclub or another. Abel was, by years, the youngest person there. He scanned the faces, trying to pick his mother out of the crowd, but whatever disguise she’d worn was a good one. He didn’t see a friendly face anywhere.

Abel checked the time on his phone, wondering where his friends were and when Lu would show up.

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