"And now, esteemed guests, please rise for the national anthem, performed today by your soaring idol, Mynah Darling!"

  She steps up to the microphone and raises one hand into the descending hush. It's a different kind of wave to the giddy one she's used to offering, to a different kind of audience. Her dress is different, too, a full-length gown in blue silk with almost no frills or ruffles, just a delicate spread of rhinestoned lace across the bodice.

  The haunting, high, opening note sounds over the PA, and she joins her voice to it, like placing a piece in a jigsaw puzzle. For once she doesn't have to think about the crowd – the nearest listeners are fifty yards away in the stands, so despite the bright day she can't make out their faces like the front row of an arena. No-one expects eye-contact from her, but here no-one will forgive a bum note or flubbed word.

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  Nor does she have to dance. It took a couple of sessions with her choreographer to get her to stand still enough after years of high-energy routines. She can raise and lower her arm a couple of times where it suits the rise of the music, that's all. Even those moments are precisely planned, trained and drilled to perfection.

  The crowd's singing is a whisper, and she doesn't really hear the band either. She feels the harmonies in her throat and chest and breath, and they dictate the sounds she makes. Though the lyrics are martial, she finds herself peaceful, empty. As so many times before, performance is action, not thinking.

  Only as the last lyric fades, '…to share my homeland', does she notice the tear creeping down her cheek.

  Tuesday: Petunia - major update (611 words)

  Wednesday: Ian - supplement (568 words)

  Thursday: Adelie - supplement (855 words)

  Friday: Brynna - major update (1489 words)

  Saturday: Brynna - supplement (266 words)

  Sunday: Race (3220 words)

  articles from a sports website covering dragon racing, if you want a broader perspective on the lore, the world and the sport.

  Second race: Buildup starts June 10th, race day June 16th

  Third race: Buildup starts June 17th, race day June 23rd

  Fourth race: Buildup starts June 26th, race day July 7th

  Fifth race: Buildup starts July 8th, race day July 20th

  Sixth race: Buildup starts July 22nd, race day 4th August

  Seventh race: Buildup starts 5th August, race day 12th August

  Eighth race: Buildup starts 13th August, race day 18th August

  Ninth race: Buildup starts 19th August, race day 25th August

  Tenth race: Buildup starts 26th August, race day 1st September

  Mid-season break: 4th-8th September

  Eleventh race: Buildup starts 9th September, race day 15th September

  Twelfth race: Buildup starts 16th September, race day 22nd September

  Thirteenth race: Buildup starts 23rd September, race day 6th October

  Fourteenth race: Buildup starts 7th October, race day 13th October

  Fifteenth race: Buildup starts 14th October, race day 20th October

  Sixteenth race: Buildup starts 23rd October, race day 27th October

  Seventeenth race: Buildup starts 30th October, race day 10th November

  Final race: Buildup starts 11th November, race day tbd (likely 1st week in December)