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Our screams bubbled around us, like a yellow aura. The barrier buffered the wind, slowing our speed.

“Woo-hoo!” Ayla cried, feeding the barrier, grinning at me.

We kept shouting, building up the protection, until we slowed enough to land. We drifted to the desert below.

By the time we reached the ground, we landed with ease. My legs trembled, taking my weight as gravity returned. Ayla ran a hand through her windswept hair, smiling broadly, like she had never worried.

We stood on a large plateau of rusty red rock. The platform was large, rising several body lengths above the desert below. It was barren except for the occasional stubborn shrub. The desert continued in every direction, not a cloud in sight.

—shaaake—

The earth shifted. A portal opened in the middle of the plateau, a blue sky shining on the other side.

A drake darted from the portal.

It flapped its wings, flying above us, as big as a bear. Drakes were highly dangerous. With their sharp teeth and claws—with their fiery breath that could kill. With spindly bodies, they were maneuverable and fast.

I wished we had donned our armor. This tunic felt too thin. At least we carried weapons.

The drake hissed. It dove toward Ayla.

My dagger was ready. I aimed and threw—

I missed. More accurately, the dagger passed through the beast like it wasn’t there.

I reached for the shadows…

Nothing.

Iwasn’t really here. After all, it wasn’t my trial. I searched for what tools I had. My voice, my appearance—

Ayla didn’t need my help. She had the situation completely under control.

By the time I understood my limitations, Ayla had landed two arrows, one in each of the drake’s wings. It flapped, gliding to the ground, but couldn’t rise. The drake began to fight from land.

Ayla pulled her sword and swung fast, keeping the drake’s spindly limbs out of reach.

The drake screeched. With a lurch, it swiveled its neck and unleashed a breath of fire. The maneuver was fast, unexpected, and clever. My heart raced, my body a bystander.

Yet Ayla danced. She dodged the first round of flame and ducked under the next. She swayed, knowing the right place to be. She struck—forging forward.

Ayla profited from her strengths, unafraid to display her fae gift of grace. Her actions revealed she was trained by soldiers, yet she showed more than skill or schooling. She foughtsmart.Ayla anticipated the drake’s every move, planning and executing a counter-strike in an instant.

Their dance was beautiful, and she was breathtaking.

I couldn’t believe we’d kissed—that she’d kissedme.The way she moved, I wondered what she might do with her bed partner…

Her rhythm overwhelmed the drake, forcing it back. It stumbled on feet not suited for land. When she sliced, it submitted. Smiling, she did it again, and the drake danced to her will.

Step by step and swing by swing, Ayla pushed the drake where she willed. She drove it to the portal’s edge.

Ayla motioned to the portal with her sword. “Go. Glide down and recover. I don’t want to kill you.”

Either the drake didn’t understand or didn’t care, for it swiveled its proud neck and hissed at the sky.

Ayla hesitated, smiling sadly at the drake’s stubbornness. Even facing defeat, it did not give up.

Then there was a clicking sound—a warning from the drake. The next fire blast would be larger and hotter than those Ayla had faced so far.