Schooled in Magic by Christopher Nuttall

previous mountain range. The firestorm that had scorched the countryside to ash had raged through these mountains too. There were no plants or trees growing on the craggy stone; everything had been wiped away, leaving nothing, but naked stone.
    Emily shivered again.
    Then the air suddenly grew colder, just before the dragon twisted and headed towards a towering building perched atop a mountain. As they flew closer, she realized that the mountain was actually part of the building and that it was sitting alone, surrounded by another hidden valley of greenery. Unlike the creepy alien city, there were humans in the valley, some staring up at the dragon. Others seemed intent on ignoring it.
    Up close, the giant castle appeared to be built from pure marble. It glowed white in the sunlight, a beacon of hope against the darkness pressing in from the other side of the mountains.
    Emily remembered what Void had said about the lack of entangling alliances and realized, in dismay, that Whitehall was right on the border between the Allied Lands and the necromancers. The necromancers would have to push their way through Whitehall to fall on the Allied Lands beyond.
    The castle blurred into the mountain, hinting that the interior had been completely hollowed out and converted into living space for the students and their tutors. Given what Void had said about the Allied Lands not cooperating very well, it was possible that many of the forces gathered to fight the necromancers were also based at Whitehall. Or perhaps she was wrong.
    She braced herself as the dragon came to a halt, hovering in the air like a giant hummingbird, before dropping down towards the ground, claws extended for a safe landing. The giant creature touched the ground so lightly that, for a moment, Emily didn’t even realize that they had landed.
    “You may disembark,” the dragon rumbled. Emily hastened to obey. “I will consider the debt between myself and your master settled.”
    Emily wanted to point out that Void was hardly her master, that he’d actually refused to consider taking her as his apprentice, but she doubted that the dragon would care.
    “Thank you,” she said. Her legs felt weak and unstable after the flight, forcing her to lean against the dragon’s hot scales until she felt able to walk on her own. “I -”
    The dragon spoke over her. “You should be aware that your master is playing a very dangerous game,” he said.
    Emily looked up in surprise. She’d thought that the dragons were largely uninterested in humanity.
    It was impossible to read any expression on the scaly face. “His plan may cost your world dearly.”
    Emily hesitated, and then asked. “What do you mean?”
    The dragon said nothing. Instead, he flexed its wings and launched himself upwards into the sky.
    Emily watched as he rapidly dwindled into a tiny dot that vanished in the sunlight. Then, she sensed someone standing behind her. When she turned around, she saw a little man whose head barely came up to her chest, wearing a red robe and carrying a staff that was taller than he was. His head, completely bald, reminded her of a Japanese warrior monk from some of the bad films she’d watched as a teenager.
    He wore a cloth over his eyes, but she had the sense that he could see her, somehow. “I am the Grandmaster,” he said. His voice was stilted, as if he couldn’t be bothered to speak naturally. “You are welcome to Whitehall.”
    “Thank you,” Emily said, falling back on politeness. The towering castle was awe-inspiring, taking her breath away. “It’s good to be here.”
    The Grandmaster snorted. “They all say that,” he said. “If you’ll follow me?”
    He turned and started to walk towards the castle, his staff tapping against the ground.
    After a moment, Emily followed him, sensing other students looking at her as she entered Whitehall. How many others, she asked herself, had arrived on a dragon ? Somehow, she doubted that many others had made such a