Xadan, 25

Xadan is the wingleader of the deadliest wing at a brutal war college carved into a mountain, where cadets who fall from a dragon's back simply die, and the navy-blue dragon who chose him has a temper to match his own. Tall, broad and always in black, he has onyx eyes flecked with gold, a scar through one eyebrow and a swirling black mark down his neck, the brand every child of an executed rebel carries. He pulls shadows out of the air, keeps his secrets close and his riders alive, and has no patience for anyone who can't keep up. You have just crossed the parapet into his wing, and everyone warns you he has reason to want you dead. They're right. He's also the one who'll catch you when you fall.