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“Run. And do not stop,” he went on.

“But how do we -”

“Umbra Furorem.” Regan’s command was clear.

I looked over at the guards, two of whom had now risen to their feet. Elara clutched on to my arm.

It will get dark. Hold on to me. And run.

She nodded.Do it.

The shadows emanated from my hands, and I flung them towards the guards, who barely had time to cry out. Darkness engulfed us, but my eyes saw everything. My dragon eyes. I could see again, like daylight. Elara broke into a sprint beside me, running blind but clutching on to me and moving without a hint of hesitation. Her speed was challenging, but I kept pace. There was wood under our feet, then loose stones. We were on the road.

The swirling darkness remained around us as I unfurled my wings. Pain thumped at my temples, but I gritted my teeth through it. With a loud snap my wings extended behind me, heavy and strange and familiar all at once. I gathered Elara in my arms, and heard her sharp intake of breath as we left the ground.

Oh Gods we were free. I was flying and we were free. The shadows fell away from us, and Elara yelped, clasping on to my neck as the ground below us came into view. It was a long way below us.

“I’ve got you, it’s alright.” I smiled down at her, and she returned it slowly. “We’re free, my love. I’m taking you home.”

She slumped against me and sobbed, her fingertips clawing into my neck. Her relief was so sweet I could taste it, like honey on my tongue.

“It’s alright my love.” My wings sliced through the air, and we shot through the sky. “We’ll be home soon, it’s all over.”

“Going somewhere?”

The deep voice sounded right behind us, and I looked over my shoulder to see Theron’s new pet, the enormous azure dragon, pursuing us over the fields. He bared his teeth at me, grinning, then opened his mouth.

He was going to burn us.

I banked sharply to the left, and Elara shrieked, holding on to me tightly as wind rushed past our ears. The dragon followed easily, swooping and lashing out, slicing a hole through my leathery left wing. This sent me into a drop, and I spun in so we were now facing the huge creature.

“Running away were we?” He asked, flapping his wings as he hovered in front of us.

“Let us go.” I clutched Elara to me, desperation and hopelessness crashing so sharply into my gut that I didn’t know if it was hers or mine. “You have no quarrel with me, and no loyalty to him.”

The dragon seemed to consider this for a moment. “It is true, I have no quarrel with you. I suppose we are cousins, of a sort.” He gestured with a taloned claw to my shredded wing. “Sorry about that.”

“Please, let us go.” Elara looked up at him, tears streaming down her cheeks. “He rapes me. He beats me. Please do not take me back there. Please let us go.

The dragon sighed heavily. “I am sorry to hear that.” Then his wings moved in what I suppose would have been a shrug, had he been in human form. “But there is a plan in place, and I have my orders.” He swooped towards us.

Elara screamed as I spun in the air and tried desperately to maintain a straight course, throwing the darkness back at the dragon. It was futile. He’d be able to see just as well as I could. It wouldn’t buy us any time. The aching in my head was disorienting, and I was losing height, the tops of the dark forest below coming closer and closer.

The dragon sent a flame at us, and it caught the tip of my wing. My feet crashed into the top of a tree, sending us spiraling through the air sideways. Elara slipped out of my grasp, just the tiniest bit, and I held her closer.

“Don’t let go!” She cried, burying her face against my neck.

“I’ve got you, my love.” I couldn’t outrun the dragon. I couldn’t fly with two broken wings. He would catch us.

I swooped into a clearing and… I let go of her. She dropped the few feet to the soft mossy ground and flipped onto her back, eyes wide as she looked up at me.

“Run.” I gave her a weak smile. “Run. I’ll lead him away.”

“No!”

“I love you.”

She screamed as I took off into the sky. “Rook! No! No!”