On dragons and flight

In Delany’s world of Nevèrÿon, dragons can glide if they jump from a ledge, but they can’t take off from the ground. In the opening chapter of Neveryóna, fifteen-year-old Pryn has just flown on dragonback, but the dragon landed in a clearing instead of on a ledge, so it won’t be able to take off again from here. The tale-teller Norema tells Pryn:

“Untie your dragon and let her wander into the mountains where she belongs. Left to herself, she’ll find the ledges she needs, as you must too—but you can’t be tied down with dragons that won’t fly where you want to go, no matter how much fun the notion of flight.”

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