The Chronicles of Dragon Collection (Series 1 Omnibus, Books 1-10) by Craig Halloran

arrow imbedded itself in its ankle.
    Twang!
    I sent the other howling to the ground as I caught it in its hip.
    Two down, none dead, but the dragon was still trapped inside.
    Drat!
    The camp was a flurry of activity now. Orcs rose from under their blankets, ripped their swords from their belts, and began barking orders. The dragon thrashed inside her cage. The latch, lock or no lock, was still holding. I moved. Bounding across the camp, ducking under a chopping axe, I lowered my shoulder, bowling the next orc over. In a single bound, I made it to the wagon and pulled the cage door free.
    A thunderous cry of alarm went up as the dragon’s long neck jutted out. She stepped from the cage, spreading her magnificent wings in the moonlight. With a single whoosh, she darted into the sky and disappeared from sight. They’re fast. So am I, but the problem is—I can’t fly!
    “You're welcome!” I yelled, for all the good it did. Of all the dragons I saved, none ever thanked me. Not that they could talk. Well, some could. Most couldn’t, and I only knew a few that did. But one would think, for all the times I helped them, they’d at least come back and help me, but they never came.
    “Kill him!” the orcs yelled, surrounding me.
    I leapt into the wagon and pulled out Fang, its blade glimmering like wildfire. Still, none fled. The orcs were stubborn like that, always letting their greedy intentions get the better of them. The orcs were not cowardly, just stupid. They closed in, weapons brandished, their faces eager for my blood. An orc with a face like cottage cheese let out an angry cry, and they charged.
    I leapt on top of the cage as a battle axe whacked a chunk out of the wagon where I had been standing. One by one, they jumped into the wagon, heavy swings nipping at my toes as I danced and batted their steel away, careful not to let my feet slip between the bars. It was chaos as one fought over top of another, trying to tear my legs from underneath me and cut me down in a tide of my own blood.
    The dragon I had freed, as with all dragons, was worth a lot. Worth enough for these thugs and rogues to gorge themselves on ale and food for months, maybe even a year. If you ever want to make somebody really mad, just take their money.
    The nearest orc bellowed as I sank my blade, Fang, into its shoulder. Fang is short for its real name that is as hard to pronounce as it is to spell, at least for me. Impossibly long. What else should I expect of a sword made by my father? Chop! Chop! Clang!
    Their blows rattled the cage, tearing more wood from the wagon. I wobbled on my legs as two more of the beastly orcs heaved the wagon in an attempt to shake me to the ground. It was getting hot now, my breath heavy as my sword arm became heavy from deflecting all their blows. My muscles were being put to the test as I struck quickly, clipping an ear, before dancing away from another’s broad stroke. I slipped. My foot went down between the cage bars, catching my knee on the metal, filling my head with an explosion of pain. I cried out.
    “We’ve got him! Kill him!”
    Three orcs surrounded me, trying to pin my arms down. I cracked one in the nose with the sword's pommel and punched another in the jaw. Its head rocked back, but my fist stung from the blow. The orc wrapped its meaty arms around my throat, arcing my spine like a bow, bending me backward over the cage.
    I was suffocating. The sweaty thing had me, and I could smell its breath, as foul as garbage. I heaved. It heaved back as I cried out in agony. My leg, still pinned between the cage bars, was ready to snap. My sword, Fang, was useless. I let it slip through my fingers, hanging onto the pommel, revealing a small dagger within that I called Dragon Claw.
    Slice!
    I stabbed the orc’s belly. It recoiled and teetered from the wagon. Bloody dagger in hand, I jabbed it into the second orc’s arm. It had power, determination. It was me or him. I had the feeling that before I poked