A Different Destiny Chapter 1

A/N
What if an unnamed French dragon's talons had found a different mark? What if it wasn't Levitas who received the mortal wounds that night?

o

The desperate messengers crash-landed in the courtyard of the covert, unable to slow themselves down in time. Dragon and rider skidded limply across the stones and plowed head-first into Maximus, who was sound asleep. The huge Regal Copper stirred in displeasure, took one sleepy glance at the relatively tiny Winchester who had disturbed his rest... and began bellowing for help.

In a matter of moments, men were running all over the courtyard. The doctor and three servants carried the savagely-wounded Captain Rankin to his chambers, where they labored to save his life. The dragon doctor did what he could for Levitas, and then left with a sad shake of his head, so Hollin took the remainder of the task upon himself (something he seemed to do very frequently with this dragon). He changed the bandages on the deep wounds as best he could, and tried to reassure the little dragon that all would be well.

"It hurts," Levitas chirped, obviously in agony. "Where is my captain? I would feel better if he was with me."

"The doctors are doing the best they can for him," Hollin said. That part was surely true. "He will come to see you as soon as he is able." That part was most likely a lie. Rankin had lost too much blood; his chances of survival were woefully slim.

Hollin looked around and spotted a handful of cadets, standing at a distance and staring at the ruined dragon who lay curled up on the stones. "Roland! Do something useful, why don't you? Fetch me some rags to pack these wounds, before the poor dragon bleeds to death!"

"I'll get you some sheets," she said as she turned and ran for the laundry area, with Dyer hot on her heels. They returned in a few minutes with a stack of worn-out but clean sheets that had been destined for cutting up into cleaning rags.

"Well done," Hollin said tersely as he worked to re-bind and cover the ghastly wounds. It was incredible that the Winchester had been able to fly at all in such a state, never mind to manage a clumsy but safe landing that did no further injury to his already-wounded rider. Hollin was in no wise certain that the dragon would outlive that rider. But Rankin had neglected his beast for far too long, and now he was unable to do anything for Levitas even if he wished to do so. Hollin was the closest thing to a real friend that Levitas had, even though the Winchester remained devoted to his own rider. No one cared about this dragon except him (and, to a lesser extent, Laurence). He might be helping the creature to survive, or he might merely be easing his passing, but he had to try.

He did his best, and it seemed to do some good; the flow of blood had slowed. He changed the bandages again after a few minutes, more for his own peace of mind than for any good they might do. Now it was a question of whether the dragon, with the famously strong constitution common to all dragons, could withstand the shock of his injuries. That was totally out of Hollin's hands. "Is there anything else I can do for you, Levitas?" he asked.

"Please find out... if my captain is going to be all right," Levitas said, so softly that Hollin nearly couldn't hear him.

He turned to the cadets, who were still watching silently. "Can one of you –"

"I'll go find out," Roland said, and was gone a moment later. It took nearly half an hour before she returned. She approached from behind Levitas so he couldn't see her, got Hollin's attention, and shook her head gravely. Hollin nodded and said nothing.

She stepped around the dragon; now Hollin could see that she was carrying a shallow pan of water. "Maybe he's thirsty," she suggested.

"Would you like something to drink?" Hollin asked the dragon.

"Yes... that would be nice... thank you." The dragon's voice was very weak. Emily set the pan down near the dragon's head, and Hollin helped hold that head up so Levitas could drink. He took several slurps, then pulled away. "That was... very kind. Thank you."

"You're welcome," Hollin and Roland said in unison.

In Rankin's chambers, the doctor did what he could, which wasn't much. The wounded man slipped in and out of consciousness, murmuring about treasures and battle honors and ungrateful dragons. No one stood watch outside his door, or paced back and forth nervously out of fear that he might not survive. Shortly after sunrise, the doctor stepped out of the room, firmly closed the door, and walked down the halls to find Admiral Lenton.

"Sir, I beg to report that Jeremy Rankin, rider to Levitas, is no more," he said, unwilling to use the word "captain" when referring to Rankin.

"He died the death of a hero, which is probably what he would have chosen," Lenton answered without emotion. "His family will give him an elaborate funeral and speak countless platitudes about what a wonderful man he was. What of Levitas?"

"I do not know; I was attending to Rankin."

"Please send me word on the small dragon's condition." The doctor nodded and left, painfully aware of the admiral's concern about the dragon and his apathy toward the man. About an hour later, a tired-looking Emily Roland approached the aged admiral.

"Beggin' your pardon, sir, but I was told to bring you word about Levitas. The Winchester."

Lenton bent down to look her in the eye. "What word do you bring?"

"Well, sir, he's hurt real bad, but Mister Hollin thinks maybe he's going to make it. He's talking a little, and he's asking for his captain. The Lord only knows why!" she added with disgust.

"De mortuis nil nisi bonum," Lenton reminded her.

Emily furrowed her brow. "Sorry, sir, but I don't understand you."

"Speak only good of the dead," he translated.

"Rankin is dead?" She bit down on her excited shout and forced herself not to leap for joy. "Why didn't you say that the first time, sir?"

"I did. You haven't studied Latin?"

"Not yet, sir," she answered. "The older enlisted men all say Latin is boring and we don't need it anymore."

"The older enlisted men don't know everything," the older man intoned. "At the very least, a knowledge of Latin will help you understand the names of the dragons. Celeritas, for example, means 'speed.' Levitas means 'levity' or 'light-heartedness.' "

"I see, sir," Emily nodded. "What does 'Lily' mean?"

Lenton snorted. "It means you're a young troublemaker, and Excidium is going to have his hands full when your day comes to ride him. Except that he has no hands."

"Mother says I'm a handful already."

"I have no doubt of that, Cadet Roland," Lenton replied. "No doubt whatsoever. That's the end of your Latin lesson for the day. Please attend to Levitas, and bring me word at once if his condition changes."

"I will, sir," she nodded as she scampered off.

Minutes passed into hours. The other cadets left to attend to their duties; Emily stayed. Laurence came looking for his missing ground-crew chief, and found Hollin sitting next to the injured Winchester, stroking his head and praising his courage. He looked up at Laurence. "I can't just leave him, sir," he tried to explain. "I know I've got my duty, but with Rankin gone, there's no one left to care for him."

"That isn't much of a change from when Rankin was alive," Laurence exclaimed with a rare public show of emotion. "No, of course you're doing the right thing." He noticed Emily standing nearby. "Do you require Roland's services as well?"

"Sir, she's been a great help to me, and to Levitas as well. I know you're supposed to fly patrol today, but if you can spare her for the rest of the morning, I think it will be good for the dragon."

"The Admiral ordered me to attend to Levitas," Emily added.

Laurence nodded slowly. "Roland, see to it that you obey Mister Hollin in everything. The moment he says he no longer needs you, you must return to Temeraire and your usual duties."

"Yes, sir," Emily answered. Her attention was on the dragon.

Hours went by. Emily brought breakfast to the weary ground-crew chief so he didn't have to leave Levitas' side. Hollin tried to stay awake after a long night and a long day, but he finally slumped over against the dragon and slept a restless sleep. Roland sat next to him, and when Levitas stirred and asked for his captain, she answered, "We've got to get you better first." She stroked his muzzle, which was one of the few unscarred places on him. He gazed at her with an appreciative eye, then slipped back into unconsciousness.

When Hollin awoke, the day was more than half spent. He blinked, realized where he was, and hurriedly checked the dragon's bandages. The bleeding seemed to be under control. "Roland, go fetch the dragon doctor," he ordered. "Tell him Levitas is still alive, and maybe stitching him up will be worth the trouble now." Emily nodded and ran to find the doctor. She found him attending to a Yellow Reaper who had taken some claw cuts in a skirmish over the Channel.

"Still alive? Very well, then. I shall have to fetch some extra silks, and I will need an assistant to pass me my instruments as I need them. My usual assistant is on a training flight with Praecursoris. Where can I find someone on short notice who's sure of hand, accustomed to dragons, and unafraid of the sight of blood?"

"Sir, I think I could do it," Emily said timidly.

"Indeed? Well, we shall see. I am almost done here; I will begin working on Levitas in fifteen minutes. If you can, I suggest that you change into some clothing which you will not be sorry to see stained." She nodded and raced for her quarters.

The operation lasted nearly three hours. The doctor needed those extra silks for suturing the dragon's many wounds, and he needed extra opium to keep the dragon sedated as well. Hollin and Roland served as his assistants, taking turns napping while the other passed the sutures and operating tools to the doctor. By the time they were done, all three were spattered with Levitas' blood, and their hands were shaking.

Admiral Lenton stopped by afterwards for a report. "Will the dragon live?" he asked.

"Sir, I don't rightly know how he got home in the first place," the doctor said with an emphatic shake of his grey head. "The damage to those muscles... I just don't understand it. Yes, if he's survived this long, he ought to make it. But I very much doubt if he'll ever fly again."

"A pity," the Admiral said sadly. "Levitas deserved better than that. And with this dark hour upon us, England needs every dragon she can get. Even a small Winchester could make the difference between victory and defeat when Boney comes for us. Pray let me know when Levitas wakes up. Rankin is gone and can't tell us what he saw when he crossed the Channel, but perhaps the dragon can give us some useful intelligence."

"It may be a while, sir, but I'll send word when the dragon awakes." He glanced at Hollin and Roland, who were both passed out from exhaustion and lying on the stony ground nearby. "Shall I notify you when they awake as well?"