Free The Divine Apprentice (The Divine Series) by Allen J Johnston

expecting his master to always have the answers.
                  “I believe they do it to warn any predator to stay out of the way, or it could be some kind of dominance or territorial issue,” Zayle said as he rubbed his ears.
                  “Well, if I heard a sound like that, I would definitely stay out of his territory.”
                  After running for almost fifteen minutes, the dragon came to a stop just fifteen feet from the charred remains of the grimalkin, or what left of it.  There were considerably more animals in the area now and they were all of the predatory variety.
                  The dragon flexed its shoulders while sticking its neck out and glared at the animals in the clearing.  Several moved but many more continued to feast on the cooked meat.  The dragon let out a deadly hiss, causing a few more to scamper out of harm’s way.  The dragon, feeling its warning was not being taken serious enough, stood up and opened its wings to their full size.  Kade was amazed with the splendor of this magnificent beast as he slid down to the ground.  Zayle also quickly slid down, sensing it was going to attack at any moment.
                  The dragon obviously took offence that not every living creature had run for its life and launched into the remaining animals with another one of those ear-splitting roars.  It proceeded to rend everything it could get its jaws and claws into.  It was not a pretty sight at all.  It made Kade slightly queasy to think back on what would have happened to him had the dragon not been so badly injured when he first blindly stumbled onto it.  Ironically, it occurred to him that he probably owed his life to the grimalkin.
                  Kade shook his head and watched his dragon do what it did best; hunt, tear flesh and feed.  He glanced at Zayle and saw his master deep in thought.  The feeling that something serious going through the Chosen’s mind returned, and the more Kade thought about it, the more he knew he needed to know what it was. 
    Later, he told himself, but it was getting more and more difficult to keep saying later.
                  The dragon charged around the carcass in search of something on the other side to fight.  Kade looked around the head of the cat-like monster and saw a grizzly bear hit the ground for the last time.  The dragon looked up, sensing something coming and took a step toward Kade, hissing as it got ready to pounce for its next attack.  It stumbled slightly as it caught itself, just barely recognizing Kade before it leapt.  It lowered its head and took a slow, shuffling step backward as its head swayed from side to side.  It was a pitiful sight.
    The half leap toward him was enough to put a lump the size of a grapefruit in his throat and cause his heart to pump several times very hard.  Kade quickly approached the dragon, giving it a pat on the shoulder, letting it know everything was ok.  He felt a strong, growing admiration for this dragon that could be so fierce, and yet, was so gentle with him. 
    As he stepped back, Kade noticed a small superficial cut and quickly healed it, as a show of affection.  This was his dragon, and he enjoyed taking care of it.  He patted it on its side to let it know the healing was done.  Its head came up and it looked Kade over, analyzing his face closely.  After a few long moments of looking directly into his eyes and seeing no displeasure, the dragon perked up.
    Kade returned to his master with the dragon on his heels.  He thought Zayle was looking at him in wonder and amazement.  He could not have been more wrong.  Zayle went back and forth between the dragon and the grimalkin several times.  The look of concern crossed his face and just as quickly, it was concealed.
    Without much thought, Kade blurted out, “Master, why do you look as though you are…?” Kade said and then hesitated, not