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Phara nodded to Rego, who joined her in the basket. She sat with Rego and clasped his arms as he hugged her close. Bellator, Artifex, Phara, Galis, Militus and Diligen shifted into theirscreoform and gripped the ropes attached to the missile. Gregis, Invicta, Operar, and Proel also changed form, then lifted the basket off the ledge.

“They will be all right.” Rego rested his forehead against her head. His somber tone and the way he trembled ever so slightly betrayed his worry.

“They will.” She rubbed his arms.

Her gaze was riveted to her men as they tugged the missile into the air and started the steady ascent to the summit. With the basket carrying her farther and farther away, she couldn’t see every nuance as they traveled. Were they managing the missileokay? The damn weapon wasn’t light. Was the smoke choking anyone? Were the spitting cinders getting close enough to singe their feathers? Anxiously Isa held her breath, trying to gauge how things were going.

Isa pulled in a deep breath when her hive made it past the top of the volcano without incident, then held it, knowing the worst was yet to come. They wisely rose higher than the mouth of the caldera, before changing directions and heading out over the fiery pit. Their progress was slower, much slower. She covered her mouth when it looked like a few of them were having trouble staying aloft and keeping their ropes taut. Someone dipped just as a plume of smoke obscured her view.

“Oh!” Her stomach leapt into her throat.

The smoke drifted and she sighed in relief seeing he was still aloft, steadily flapping. He wasn’t the only one struggling, the farther they went over the caldera. She couldn’t watch, and yet she couldn’t look away, either.

There was a subtle screech of a hawk. She wasn’t sure if it was Bellator giving the signal or another raptor in the area until the missile started falling. Her men began exiting the area, flapping their wings as fast as they could.

“Now get out of there,” Rego murmured as the missile disappeared into the crater.

Isa nodded in agreement.

Abruptly there was a burst of smoke that shot hundreds of feet into the air, burning ash and magma accompanying it.

“Oh god!” she cried. The missile must have had an explosive charge meant to disperse the chemical toxin.

“Flux!” Rego cursed.

Thescreocarrying the produce basket faltered, the whole thing dipping, as they cried out in shock, though they swiftly recovered.

“Please, please, please,” she prayed, clutching Rego tight as she stared into the smoke billowing over the volcano.

Onescreoemerged from the toxic cloud after an agonizingly long moment, followed by a second, and then a third flying toward them.

Is that all who made it?It was only half of the brave Vorto who had undertaken the task. She was still missing three of her guys. Isa started to hyperventilate.

Hope flared when two morescreoflew around the column of smoke.

“Brace for more passengers!” Rego shouted as the first of her men neared.

On Rego’s command the members of their party who were flying nearby swooped in and grabbed the spare ropes attached to the carrier, preparing for the extra weight.

Isa’s attention was divided between watching the men coming in, and looking for the one still absent, lost somewhere amidst the smoke. She didn’t recognize her men in their animal forms yet, so she wasn’t certain who the first screo was as they touched down in the basket.

“My queen.” Artifex blinked his bird-eyes at her.

“Oh, Artifex,” she declared and crawled over to him. Her vision blurred when she saw how singed his feathers were and the way he’d gone from purple to gray from all the ash. “Are you injured?” She reached out to touch him, but her hand froze midair, not wanting to hurt him.

“I’ll be all right.” Artifex nuzzled her hand before shifting. Even in his humanoid form, he had dark discolored patches where he’d been burned. Thankfully they didn’t look too extensive.

“We did it!” Diligen landed next, drawing her attention. Relief and exhaustion were evident in his voice.

“Yes, you did!” She smiled at him, although the way he coughed had her worried.

“Success.” Phara followed, instantly shifting into his humanoid form when he landed. “I’m almost certain the Blight weapon sank into the lava before the eruption happened.” He pulled her into his arms.

“I hope that’s the end of it,” Isa prayed as she kissed his chest and gently hugged him, careful for his burns.

“I do, too.” Artifex caressed her back.

“Galis went down.” Militus landed.