What value is freedom when you can’t even ride a dragon?
As the life of a slave goes, Kantees doesn't have it too bad. Being responsible for a racing dragon means her existence is more than just drudgery and fear, even if her life is at the whim of her masters and their rules.
But when her dragon wakes her in the middle of the night Kantees is forced to make a life-or-death decision that breaks her masters’ rules and means her own life is forfeit.