Page 25 of Bound by Fire and Scales (The Dragons of Earis #1)

I came to a stop with a sharp gasp, my chest heaving, the searing ache in my body jolting me back to the brutal reality around me. Flames licked hungrily at the debris scattered across the ground, casting a harsh, violent light over the carnage. My head throbbed, my vision blurred, and I could barely make out the shapes around me. My limbs felt weighted, sluggish, as though each muscle was tied to the ground itself. But I forced myself to sit up, clenching my jaw as I struggled against the sharp pain in my body.

“Fucking hell, tailchaser. Thought you were a goner,” a familiar voice said, rough but laced with relief. Enrik’s silhouette sharpened into focus, his face tight with concern as he crouched near me. Despite the tension in his eyes, he let out a soft sigh, the muscles in his shoulders relaxing just a fraction.

“What…what happened?” I managed, my voice strained and hoarse. I pushed myself to stand, but my legs wobbled, unsteady beneath me, and a dull ache pulsed at the back of my skull. I steadied myself with one hand on my head, piecing together the broken fragments of memory. I remembered the old woman, her dark presence on the battlefield, her twisted words as she’d spoken to Zephyr.

But then... everything had become a blur.

Enrik’s face darkened, and he looked away, fists clenched at his sides. “That mage…she’s got Zephyr under her control.”

My heart twisted, every beat a pang of cold dread.

Zephyr. Just by hearing his name, I snapped right back into the present. I staggered, forcing my legs to carry me forward, my eyes scanning the sky, the twisted landscape, desperate for any sign of him.

“What did she do to him?” My voice trembled, the fear raw and ripping its way out of me. I pushed past Enrik, gripping his shirt, my hands trembling as I yanked him closer. “Where is Zephyr?”

A heavy silence passed between us, broken only by the distant crackle of flames, the groan of collapsing walls. Enrik’s gaze softened, but the sorrow there pierced through me like a blade. He nodded toward the sky, his voice thick. “She made him go berserk, Sabrina.”

I staggered back, my eyes following Enrik’s hand as he pointed upward. Far above, a shape slashed through the smoke-filled sky, massive wings cutting through clouds of ash. His scales gleamed a deep, furious red as he swooped low over the ruins of the village.

No.

The village lay in ruins, flames licking hungrily at what little remained, casting an orange glow over the wreckage of what once was a colorful and full of life place. Ash and smoke filled the air, thick and suffocating, clinging to my skin, seeping into every breath I took.

My stomach churned, twisting painfully as my eyes swept over the destruction.

No.

Houses that had held memories, laughter, and warmth now stood as charred skeletons, barely upright, the wood cracking and snapping under the weight of the flames. Then I saw the bodies. The bodies lay scattered across the ground, some reaching out as if grasping for one last bit of life. Men and women who had barely any chance to defend themselves. Had they tried to fight back? To stand against Zephyr’s power? These weren’t warriors; they were people with families, lives… lives that had just been mercilessly taken.

All taken by Zephyr.

“Sabrina…” Enrik’s voice broke through, but I ignored him, wiping my mouth with my sleeve. I had to stop him. I had to help Zephyr.

I looked up to see Kislav in his dragon form, his silhouette black against the fiery sky, wings stretched wide as he circled, preparing to strike. His roar cut through the chaos, wild and fierce, shaking the ground beneath my feet. Zephyr shot toward him, a furious blaze of red scales and flame. My breath hitched, fear sinking its claws into me as they collided, the force of their impact shaking the earth.

The two dragons crashed down, ripping through the remnants of the village, leaving a trail of wreckage in their wake. Their roars echoed off the burning walls, a terrifying symphony of anger and power as claws met scales, as fire met fire. I could only watch as they tore through the village, as what little was left was crushed beneath their weight.

Desperation clawed at me, grief and helplessness swelling until it was nearly unbearable. I could barely breathe, tears threatening to fall down my eyes. This wasn’t Zephyr. No, this was a creature set loose, destroying everything on his path. “No…no, that can’t be him.” I shook my head, the words spilling out, desperate to deny what I was seeing. But there was no denying it. Every instinct I had, every thread between us, told me it was Zephyr. And he was lost in a rage that was te aring him—and everything else—apart.

Another roar split the air, and he dove low, fire spilling from his jaws in a sweeping arc that set the remains of a house ablaze. The ground shook as his claws slashed through the wreckage, splintering wood and stone beneath him. People ran, shouting, scrambling to escape the inferno that raged from his jaws.

“Zephyr!” I screamed, my voice breaking. I took a step forward, but Enrik’s hand shot out, gripping my arm.

“Sabrina, don’t!” he shouted. “You don’t know what he’ll do. He’s not…himself.”

“I don’t care!” I cried, pulling free from Enrik’s grasp, the desperation in my chest overwhelming every warning, every fear. “He’s still in there somewhere. I know he is.”

Without thinking, I ran forward, every step sending jolts of pain through my battered body. I could feel Enrik’s eyes on me, his shock, but I kept going, the fire threatening to scorch my skin as I drew closer to the furious red dragon thrashing through the village. But I didn’t care. I didn’t fear the fire. Not anymore. All I needed was to get closer to him. Closer to Zephyr. Flames danced between us, but I pushed forward, my gaze never leaving him.

“Zephyr!” I screamed again, my voice raw. “It’s me, Sabrina!”

The massive head snapped in my direction, blazing green eyes locking onto me, fury unrestrained and feral. For that instant, all I saw was the dragon—unleashed, untamed, a storm of muscle and fire. His mouth opened, heat building as flames churned at the back of his throat. If he unleashed it, I’d be gone in a breath, nothing but ashes scattered by the wind. But I didn’t move. My grip tightened around the dagger he’d forged for me, my last link to him.

Then… his gaze wavered.

Just the slightest flicker, a sliver of something familiar behind that wild rage, a glimpse of the Zephyr I knew. But the moment shattered—his body shuddered, as if jolted, and with a deafening roar, he tore through the air, wings beating as he shot skyward, blazing toward the fortress .

“Well, you must be his little human mate,” a voice drawled behind me. I turned around to find the old woman from the battlefield. I could barely see her face covered by her dark cape, but I saw the ugly deep purple bruises on the skin of her neck, coiling around like serpents.

“You fucking bitch!” I barked, fury boiling over as I lunged at her, dagger raised in my hand. She would turn him back or pay for every drop of this madness. But I never got close. She lifted her staff, and a pulse of energy slammed into me, sending me sprawling backward on the ground. I pushed myself up, wincing as pain flared through my ribs.

She chuckled, a mocking sound that made my blood burn. “Yes, she told me you’d be a little firebrand,” she taunted, her voice dripping with amusement.

Who she was didn’t matter. “Turn him back!” I snarled, my voice raw with desperation and rage, fists clenched so tightly around the dagger that my knuckles ached.

The old woman merely raised an eyebrow, her expression as calm and indifferent as if we were discussing the weather. “Turn him back?” she echoed, the faintest smirk tugging at the corners of her thin lips. “Why would I undo my work? His rage… it serves me well.”

I gritted my teeth, fury vibrating through me as I took a step closer, ready to strike again. But she raised her staff, a warning glint in her eye that made me halt. “Zephyr would tear you apart just as easily as he would a foe. And you’re so devoted, aren’t you? Willing to die for him.”

I steadied my breathing, forcing the words through clenched teeth. “I’d do more than die for him. But you’ll have to kill me first if you think I’m letting you get away with this.”

The woman tilted her head, studying me with unsettling amusement. “So eager to challenge power you barely understand. But that’s love, isn’t it? Makes you brave in all the foolish ways.” She raised the staff again, and I felt the tension coil in the air, raw energy crackling between us.

I lunged before she could act, dagger ready, aiming to find a weak spot in her defense, anything to throw her off. But with a flick of her wrist, another wave of force slammed into me, sending me crashing into the ground once more, dirt and ash stinging my eyes.

“Persistent, aren’t we?” she taunted, closing the distance between us with measured steps. I forced myself up, refusing to let her see the pain. She loomed over me, her staff glowing with a sickly green light. “Tell me, little human, what will you do when he doesn’t recognize you anymore? When he’s nothing but a weapon for my use?”

“Then I’ll keep fighting,” I spat, my voice barely a whisper, but laced with every ounce of defiance I had left. “I’ll fight until he remembers… and then you’ll wish you never crossed us.”

She let out a sharp laugh, cold and unfeeling, but there was a hint of something else there—an edge, maybe a flicker of uncertainty. “Very well, then,” she murmured, taking a step back and lifting her staff high. “Let’s see if your love is enough to survive this.”

With a wave of her staff, the ground trembled, and a sudden roar shook the air. Zephyr’s roar, wild and guttural, echoing from above as he descended, his green eyes blazing with that same terrifying emptiness. He dove toward me, claws outstretched, and I knew I had seconds to reach him, to make him remember.

I stood my ground, dagger in hand, looking up at him with everything I had left. “Zephyr!” I screamed, desperation ripping through me. “It’s me! Remember who you are!”

His gaze fixed on me, and for a breathless instant, I thought I saw something shift, a flicker of doubt. But the mage’s hold was strong. He thundered toward me, and I braced myself, praying that the bond between us, no matter how faint, would be enough to break through the madness before it was too late.

My heart raced, each beat echoing my fear and my hope. “Zephyr!” I cried again, my voice trembling but resolute. “Fight it! You’re stronger than this!”

His eyes, blazing with fury, bore down on me, yet that flicker of recognition still danced at the edges of his gaze. I took a step forward, dagger raised, not in threat but as a lifeline—a promise that I would stand by him no matter what. “You’re my mate! You can’t let her control you!”

With a roar that shook the Heavens, he lunged, jaws open wide, flames licking at the edges of his mouth. Panic surged through me, but I didn’t move. I couldn’t give up on him now. “Please, Zephyr!” I shouted, desperation clawing at my throat as my tears began to roll freely down my cheeks. “I’m your mate! I saw our future in the flames, Zephyr. I saw us together with our child, a beautiful boy with your red hair. Please, please,” I choked on my tears, the vision of our little happy family real in my mind. “Don’t let them win.”

For a fleeting moment, his movements stilled, and I thought I saw a shadow of my dragon flicker behind the wildness in his eyes. “Sabrina…” he rumbled, his voice low and strained, as if fighting against an unseen force.

But the mage’s laughter pierced through the moment, cold and mocking. “Such foolish sentiment! He belongs to us now!” she taunted, her staff glowing with an ominous light.

“No!” I screamed, turning my rage toward her. “Turn him back!” I screamed, as she thrusted her staff forward, unleashing a torrent of dark energy aimed straight at me.

It all happened quickly. Enrik’s necklace, once cool against my skin, began to levitate, the stone shimmering with a vibrant energy that pulsed in sync with my racing heart. It felt alive, as if it had been waiting for this very moment to respond to the encroaching darkness emanating from the mage’s staff. I yanked the golden thread from around my neck, snapping it free, and lifted the necklace in defiance against her magic. As the two forces clashed, the air crackled with tension, and a brilliant flash of light erupted between us, momentarily blinding me.

The darkness splintered and recoiled, as if struck by a hammer, and the shockwave of energy radiated outward, throwing me off balance. I staggered, the raw power of the necklace slicing through the mage’s spell like a knife through silk, unraveling the malevolent threads she had around Zephyr. I gasped as the blinding light enveloped us, creating a barrier against her dark magic .

“Zephyr!” I gasped, pain radiating through me as I struggled to stay upright. “Fight it! I’m here!”

Everything faded but him, my love, my dragon, my mate. I felt the warmth of him beneath the storm of chaos, and I poured every ounce of my will into that connection. “I believe in you!” I screamed, praying that he could feel me, that our bond could break through the darkness, suffocating him. With a deafening roar, Zephyr surged forward, eyes blazing with fury and defiance, and the mage’s hold began to waver.

The air shimmered with raw energy as he launched into the sky, the force of our combined power igniting a tempest of light battling against the shadows that sought to claim him. Then, with one final, earth-shattering roar, he broke free, the darkness dissipating around him like smoke in the wind.

“Sabrina!” he bellowed, his voice powerful and clear, drowning out the remnants of the mage’s control. The shadows fled, and in their place stood the Zephyr I knew and loved, fierce and resolute.

The mage shrieked in fury, lifting her arms with a sudden, frantic energy. As her sleeves fell away, I caught a glimpse of her skin, marred by deep purple bruises that snaked their way down her arms. She muttered a chant in a language I’d never heard before, the syllables twisted and foreign, sending chills down my spine. Then, in an instant, she vanished, leaving behind only an eerie silence that hung heavily in the air.

But there was only Zephyr in my mind. My heart raced as I turned to him. Panic surged within me at the sight of my mate sprawled on the ground in his human form, his naked body smeared with blood—blood that I knew wasn’t his.

“Zephyr! Please!” I cried, rushing to his side, my voice cracking with desperation. “Please be okay–Please, please!” Tears streamed down my face as I collapsed beside him, my trembling hands cradling his face, willing him to open his eyes and meet my gaze.

His eyes were closed, but the gentle rise and fall of his chest let me know he was still breathing. I let out a shaky breath of relief, feeling the weight of my fear lift ever so slightly. I collapsed on top of him, burying my face in his chest, feeling the warmth of his body beneath me.

“I thought I lost you,” I whispered, my heart aching at the thought of losing him.

He was my alpha and nothing would tear us apart again.