Onyx and Avalon were standing at attention with their chests puffed out so far their front legs were barely touching the ground.
Onyx's chin was elevated at an angle that said I am a serious military dragon and I have always been a serious military dragon. Avalon's wings were tucked with a precision he had never once demonstrated in any previous drill because previous drills had been conducted by Caelum and Caelum did not carry the authority of a dead king whose presence made dragon bones vibrate.
The Dragon King stopped. His gold eyes moved over Onyx first. Then Avalon.
His hand came up. He ran his palm across Onyx's flank. Slowly. Then Avalon's. The touch was diagnostic, reading their scales the way a healer reads a pulse.
"These two." He turned to Caelum. "Their scale maintenance is exceptional. The luster, the density, the oil saturation. This is meticulous work. How often are they treated?"
