Page 35 of Ava’s Legacy of the Dragons (Of Dragons, Love, and Destiny #1)

Were their final seconds approaching? If so, she would leave no stone unturned and fight until her last breath. For herself. For Lilly. For the dragon!

As she held the two wooden stumps in front of herself and Lilly for protection, a beating sound carried by the wind reached them.

It grew louder and louder until a huge dragon suddenly spread across the sky, swallowing the light of the stars.

It opened its maw and heat spread across the theater square before any of the mages had a chance to mutter a spell.

Immediately, Ava pulled Lilly to the ground and lay down protectively over her. The heat of the fire swept over them and it became hot, but the flames didn't reach them.

The hooded figures screamed and fled, but not all were fast enough. The dragon caught some before they could escape. With every beat of its wings, it sank lower until they could see the rider sitting on its back.

Kilian.

He began to land beside them with his monstrous fire dragon.

The wings generated so much wind that Ava's hair fluttered wildly.

A few sparks sprayed and landed on her sleeve, which she quickly patted out.

A bleacher crashed down, the previous year's foliage had turned to ash, and embers glowed here and there.

When Thalara touched down, the earth shook, and the little dragon child in her bag began to squeak joyfully.

Ava raised her head cautiously to make sure the fire show was over. Apparently that was the case, because Kilian swung off the dragon's back and in one step was by her side, pulling her to her feet.

"Are you alright?" His eyes glowed as if he would pursue each individual opponent to their death if it were otherwise. Which she was convinced of immediately.

"We're fine." She helped Lilly to her feet, and the girl coughed and wiped the dust from her face. Once Ava had checked that Lilly and Marcus were unharmed, she stroked her leather bag where the dragon child was moving. He desperately wanted to come out.

"Shouldn't we wait a moment longer?"

"No, no. I want out!"

She hesitated. Shouldn't she wait a bit longer to make sure the hooded figures were really driven away? But he was kicking and turning, unable to stay in the bag for another second.

With one last glance, she made sure the danger had passed.

Then again, who would approach them as long as Thalara was ready to incinerate anyone whose face she didn't like?

The fire dragon grimly surveyed the theater courtyard, making sinuous head movements.

Ava herself would have run away if she hadn't gradually gotten used to the dragons and even grown fond of this enormous specimen.

Smiling, she opened the bag. "There's someone here who's eager to get to know the world."

She was truly overcome by the little dragon's unbridled joy.

Grinning, she took him out, and immediately his golden eyes began to shine as he saw the big fire dragon.

He squeaked again. Ava and Lilly had to laugh, while Marcus just smiled.

Judging by his pale complexion, he hadn't yet recovered from the shock.

"Hey, little one." Kilian reached out his hand to the baby dragon and let him sniff his fingers.

When the little one squeaked again, a restrained laugh escaped the dragon fighter.

Ava had to laugh too, looking at Kilian, who gazed at her for a moment as if they were both free, as if there were no obligations and everything was possible.

Even a love between the two of them.

But Ava immediately remembered his words.

Marcus didn't need to clear his throat for her to, though he did so audibly anyway.

She moved away from Kilian and set the young dragon on Thalara's back.

The little one squeaked happily and crawled up the scales, while the adult fire dragon let out a gentle rumble. It sounded tender.

Kilian made to take Ava's hand. "Can we talk for a moment?"

Pressing her lips firmly together, she shook her head. "It's okay, Kilian, I understand." And she really did. A world without dragons was the worst thing she could imagine. Especially because that would have meant her little dragon would have died too. So there was nothing left to say.

To make it easier on both him and herself, she walked a few meters to the stands to catch her breath, to gain some distance. She heard footsteps and turned around alarmed, but it was only Marcus following her.

She urgently needed to get a grip on her jumpiness. But who could blame her after everything she had gone through in the past few days?

He looked at her with concern. "You shouldn't go too far alone. Many of Elora's followers have escaped."

"I just need a few minutes to myself. Kilian and Thalara are here to protect the dragon child. Or do you think our enemies would dare to snatch the little one past the giant claws of the fire dragon?"

Marcus smiled. "You're probably right. Besides, I'd bet a horde of soldiers is on their way here, which is why the mages have fled. With all that noise, it would be a miracle if we had remained undetected."

She had thought of that too. She looked toward the large gate, but the street was still deserted. "Kilian's dragon will take the little one away soon. They can question us all they want, they won't find any trace of the egg." And then the king's men would finally stop pursuing them.

Marcus nodded. "Guess that means we've made it."

She shrugged, apparently making a sadder impression than intended, because Marcus tilted his head.

"Are you sure I can't accompany you?" He made to take her hand, but Ava crossed her arms in front of her body.

"No, thank you, I need time for myself before the soldiers come and I probably have to answer a thousand questions."

He nodded understandingly. "But don't go too far, okay?"

"I promise."

"And I promise you that I'll always be there for you."

She gave him a hesitant smile and walked away.

Just a few steps. Now that the dragon child was safe, she dared to let the hatchling out of her sight for a moment.

She stayed away from the shadows of the stands even though the mage's men must have long since fled, as they too must have realized that the place would be swarming with soldiers within the next few minutes.

She strolled in the light of the stars for a few meters and unintentionally kicked a stone aside.

It shimmered milky white, which made her spontaneously run after it to pick it up.

The dragon had hatched, and it was time to ask herself what she should do now.

She had wanted to wait until this moment to return to Aunt Helen afterwards.

But even if the dragon child no longer needed her, she wouldn't leave Lilly alone.

Yet she didn't want to take the girl away from this world; on the contrary.

It would be nicer to get to know this dragon realm with all its different sides and its various possibilities.

And with the question of what it held in store for Ava.

It wouldn't be easy to watch Kilian marry the princess.

But wouldn't it still be worth considering staying a little longer?

As the idea grew in mind, she strolled back. It occurred to her that maybe she should run away before the soldiers came after all. On the other hand, then she would have been on the run forever, which wasn't desirable either.

Although she remained constantly in the starlight and hadn't moved more than twenty paces away from the others, an arm suddenly wrapped around her from behind.

A hand pressed against her mouth, and someone hit her hard on the head.

Before any of her friends could notice the assault and she could cry for help, she lost consciousness.