Page 31 of Crown of Betrayal and Blood (Dragons of Tirene #3)

Chapter Thirty-One

Snowflakes whip around, stinging my face, as I hunker down against Bastian’s back and try to spot whatever has instilled so much fear in three adult dragons. We’re high up, the mountain range beneath us a jagged scar through the storm’s fury. Kaida’s massive wings beat with a thunderous rhythm, his black scales barely visible in the whiteout.

Nailah and the Aclaris dragon have vanished, their silhouettes lost to the northern gales. I squint into the blizzard but can’t spot them. My heart aches for them. Their fear has stolen their reason, and even my attempts at mental soothing fail to register.

I focus on the wreath of fire around us to ward off the bone-chilling cold. It’s a delicate balance. Too much and I risk scorching Bastian or Kaida, too little and frostbite will claim us. My magic flares, casting an eerie glow against the swirling snow. But even the warmth isn’t enough to entice Nailah to come back to us. The retreating silhouettes disappear in the sheets of ice and snow pouring down the high mountains.

We still don’t know what triggered that influx of fear. A drachen would be the most logical assumption. However, we’re high in the air and should be out of their reach. Snowstorms such as these, I’ve read, can sometimes become lightning storms. Which can cause unease in animals or humans caught in them.

Through our empathic link, I urge Kaida to follow them. Without the bubble of heat, ice will form on Nailah’s wings and slow her down if nothing else. She could lose control and spiral to her death on the valley hidden far below.

Kaida’s roar vibrates through my bones, a mix of fury and fright. Though he’s as scared as Nailah, he refuses to give in to it, stubbornly determined not to abandon us again. And he’s angry that he still wants to flee, regardless. His anger is a beacon in the storm, a lifeline he clings to as he shivers with fear.

The howling wind distorts Bastian’s shout. “There!”

I track his gaze, and my breath catches. A black dragon emerges from the storm, terror rolling off it like a palpable force. Every nerve in my body and beat of my heart tells me this beast is fear incarnate. Fright and the instinctive urge to flee crash against my senses like a relentless tide.

“Damnit!” My head pounds, and my vision blurs. I can’t let this terror consume me, drown me. With gritted teeth, I pull my magic inward, crafting a shield within my mind that wraps around me. The protective barrier dulls the assault of raw emotions.

Then the cold seeps in.

I broke my bubble of heat to form my dampening shield. Both Bastian and Kaida shiver as the lost warmth leaves them exposed to the artic temperatures.

Focus, Lark. You’ve got this. One in. One out. You know how to do both of them. Now you have to do both at the same time. You can do this.

My fingers dig into Kaida’s scales, icy blasts threatening to peel away the warmth we’ve cocooned ourselves in.

The effort is like holding onto two wild alicorns flying in opposite directions. Possible, but only barely. “Something’s off. That dragon is terrified, but it’s still heading directly for us. There has to be a drachen following it.”

“Can you reach it? Calm it down?” Bastian shouts over the howl of the storm, his words barely breaking through the chaos. “Maybe free it from their control like you did with the last one before it can reach us to attack?”

I grit my teeth, starting to get the hang of maintaining conflicting shields at the same time. “Only if I stop dampening, but then I’ll be filled with the projected fear and might end up doing something stupid.”

Kaida dips lower, muscles coiling beneath his dark scales as he puts distance between us and the mountain’s wrathful weather. We’re finally slipping out of the storm’s grasp, the ferocity of the snow lessening and granting us clearer vision of our pursuer.

The wind bites at my skin, a thousand needles of cold as Kaida banks sharply to the left, his massive wings straining against the gale. I push my focus to the forefront, trying to make sense of the dragon that hounds us.

“It doesn’t look right. Why would the dragon be rushing toward us if not urged by a rider?” My brow furrows. “And the way it moves…” Unease settles deep within my gut. Am I seeing this wrong? With the swirls of reflective ice and snow, maybe I’m hallucinating.

Then, as if the very essence of my shield decides to betray me, it falters. Dread floods in, drowning me in raw terror.

It’s not just any fear. It’s ancient, primal, and utterly paralyzing.

It’s not screaming to run. Or hide. Or anything else like the dragons felt before. What is going on? Is there something below that is forcing it to attack us?

“Look again!” Bastian’s yell cuts through the numbness that encases my heart. “That’s no dragon.”

I squint against the lingering flurries, and the sight robs me of my breath. Because it’s been flying up while we were flying down, it’s nearly level with us, mirroring our flight path with eerie precision.

The black wings and body stand out in stark contrast to the surrounding white. This creature could be a shadow of Kaida. Twisted and distorted, the beast is enormous, longer than the largest dragon I’ve ever seen from tail tip to chin. Wings sweep like waves, boneless and once again too long, too pointed.

Four appendages hang below it, tapering off into razor-sharp points. Its tail is too long and whiplike, and there’s no defined head with a snout and frill. Instead, a bulbous shape tops the end aimed in our direction, and hungry, black eyes devour us with malevolent intent.

A horrified shudder racks my body as the utter wrongness of the creature swamps me.

“Drachen!” I gasp. My voice is barely audible even to myself, so I start screaming to make sure he understands. “Bastian, that’s not a dragon. It’s a drachen!” A fully corporeal drachen.

Panic spikes in my chest, mixing with the ceaseless terror emitting from the creature as my dampening shield falters again. The realization hits me hard as Kaida bellows in fear. Bastian hunches low, his body rigid.

Every time I screw up, Kaida suffers too, but now isn’t the time to freeze.

Not when every second counts. Not when the lives of those I care about hang in the balance.

I refuse to let the fear claim me. Not today. Redoubling my efforts, I dampen again, knowing if I falter with the drachen this close, it could be the end of all three of us.

No pressure.

Every instinct screams at me to flee, to escape this embodiment of nightmares. “Keep going, Kaida! Get us out of here!”

I don’t know if we can outrun a drachen, but we have to try.

“We can’t just try to outfly it all the way back to the palace!” Bastian urges Kaida to move faster. “We need a plan.”

A plan.

Right.

“Working on it!”

The drachen, a slithering mass of darkness and dread, elongates impossibly before my eyes. It lunges, bulbous head splitting into a gaping maw lined with daggers for teeth, aiming straight for Bastian and me.

Kaida’s reaction is instant, his heavy tail swinging with the force of a trebuchet.

The clubbed end connects with a sickening thud, sending the drachen reeling to the side.

I want to send my praise directly to Kaida but can’t with the dampening shield in place. Unable to share emotions, I need to rely on voice and body language, like any other dragonrider. “Nice one!” I shout, clinging to Kaida’s scales as he rights himself in the air.

My mind races. Every weapon we used against the drachen before proved useless. Not once did our spears or swords or arrows connect…all bladed weapons. Is it the bluntness of Kaida’s tail that makes the difference? Or maybe this nightmarish creature has somehow evolved into a fully physical form that can be wounded, unlike the shadowy creatures we first encountered.

Either way, relief is short-lived as the drachen recovers with frightening speed, charging at us again with renewed hunger.

“Shit!” Bastian curses as he twists around to track its approach, his focus sharp as flint.

We can’t keep dodging this thing forever.

Fire answers Bastian’s call, sitting in his palm before he snaps his arm forward and lances it, spear-like, at the approaching drachen.

Flames dance at my fingertips, desperate and ravenous. Every time the drachen nears, I pepper its eyes with a multitude of small sparks. In front of me, Bastian does the same, his magic less potent but more concentrated since he doesn’t need to hold the bubble of warmth at the same time.

The drachen weaves through our fiery assault, its form contorting like smoke on the wind to evade the deadly heat. It seems more concerned with avoiding Kaida’s tail than our fire, but anything to keep us alive is good enough for me.

Unless it’s stalling so more will come? How did a drachen get this big in the first place? There’s no way we’re getting out of here if there are more drachen this size. I’m not sure we can survive facing this one.

Bastian’s fire streams harmlessly down the neck of the drachen, splattering off its shoulder. Fire worked on the drachen during the attack at the palace, but only to drive them back. This one—hundreds if not thousands of times larger—doesn’t seem fazed by our flames at all.

Every time we encounter the drachen, they’ve changed. Like they’re constantly evolving and getting stronger.

Kaida twists and turns midair, his powerful wings slicing through the tempest that threatens to throw us off course. Claws the size of my arm rake over the drachen as Kaida lashes out with his back legs.

But the drachen is relentless, a dark silhouette of fear that refuses to be shaken. Shadowy forelegs stretch toward Kaida’s tail.

“Come on, hold still!” Bastian grumbles, frustration lacing his voice.

“Good luck with that working,” I snip before yelping. “Watch out!”

The drachen folds in two before taking another pass, claws reaching for us with insidious intent from the middle of its back.

Kaida barrels to the side, a maneuver so abrupt it catches me off guard.

The roll isn’t fast enough to evade the tentacle that darts from the claw. The sinuous shadow pummels my side, knocking the air from my lungs.

My grip slips, and for a heart-stopping moment, I grapple with air as I try to grab hold of Bastian’s back. “Fuck!”

“Lark!” Bastian turns, and his flame-covered hands reach for me.

Too slow.

We’re both just too damned slow.

I’m knocked free, airborne in the worst way possible. Tumbling into the icy grasp of the storm below, the ground rushes up to meet me far too quickly. I anchor the heat bubble to Kaida, knowing he’s still not low enough to be safe from the encasing ice.

And if Kaida slows down from the cold, we’re all dead.

* * *

“No, Lark!” Bastian’s voice is a distant echo against the howling wind.

Kaida’s roar shakes the storm, fueled with rage and fear. Not for himself, but for me. It’s a sound that pierces through the disarray, grounding me despite the panic clawing at my insides.

This is bad. Really bad. Snow pelts my face as I plummet, each flake a tiny dagger reminding me of the unforgiving altitude.

I snap open my wings, the frigid air biting at the delicate bones and joints. They stiffen but obey, jerking my plunge into a clumsy glide. My breath comes out in ragged puffs, visible even amidst the swirling snow. I twist, trying to right myself, but every gust is a fresh challenge.

The wind wrenches tears from my eyes, the sting almost unbearable.

Undeterred, the drachen continues its relentless attacks, a shadow with willowy wings riding the storms’ fury. The creature abandons its pursuit of Kaida and zeroes in on me, drawn to my fear like it’s some kind of delicious perfume.

I can’t outrun it.

It’s too fast, too eager for the kill.

With a speed that defies nature, tendrils of living darkness reach for me from the main mass. One wraps around me, squeezing. My breath hitches as it crushes my wings to my sides and pounds against my emotional shield.

I feel my grasp on the barrier weakening and channel more power into shoring it up. If my shield crumbles, I’m a goner. The corruption will enter me and manipulate me like a puppet against my family and friends.

I tuck my wings closer to my body, and the slight break in pressure allows me to suck in a little more air.

The drachen’s cold, unyielding grip tightens like a vice.

Bastian screams my name into the chaos.

He’s searching for me.

Kaida’s rage echoes next, a guttural sound that vibrates through the very air.

I can’t make out his form in the white storm. Can’t tell if Bastian is still safely on his back. But I hear the anguish, the terror in their voices.

They’re trying to turn back for me, I know it, but physics and a malevolent will are against us all.

Wrapped in the larger, heavier drachen, I’m plummeting from the sky away from them.

I tuck my chin into my chest to protect myself. There’s nothing I can do about the fast-approaching ground. Only the continuing snowfall tells me I’m still somehow near the top of the mountain.

The tendrils spread, encircling my shoulders and head and cinching hard enough to bring tears to my eyes.

The beast shudders, and a high-pitched shriek pierces my ears.

Then I’m free falling again.

The dry, frigid air rips at my exposed skin and closed eyelids. Pain lances through me as I force my eyes open and squint against the whirling snow.

The drachen releases its death grip as ragged holes puncture the black tendrils.

My tears, I realize. The holes are from my tears.

My heart hammers with a burst of victory.

Somehow, my tears are burning through the drachen’s darkness. It’s a small triumph, but I’ll take it.

Okay, Lark, think. You’ve got plenty of time to do that before you splatter on the rocky ground below. Unless you hit one of those spear-like outcroppings of stone we saw on the way in.

I can’t cry an ocean, but maybe there’s another way. The hope inside me flares brighter, even as the frigid air bites into my skin.

The drachen pursues me relentlessly, holes mending together and healing before my eyes. In a matter of seconds, the creature is whole again. There’s no evidence of any tear-induced damage.

My heart sinks.

The spark of hope snuffs out as quickly as it ignited.

I can’t kill the drachen with my tears. And fire doesn’t repel them as easily as before.

Because the bastards are constantly changing.

But there has to be a way to escape. To force this monster to retreat.

Time for Plan B. For that, I need Kaida’s help.

Without hesitation, I dial down the magical shield muting the tide of emotions from the beasts around me, just enough to slip my thoughts through to him. Shoving aside the fear that claws at my mind, but I reach out to my dragon ally.

The same way he clung to anger to override his fear, I cling to my need for dragonfire to save me.

I sense his reluctance and a wave of concern that nearly drowns out my own fear. He doesn’t want to risk hurting me.

Dragonfire is not the same kind of fire we use. It is heavier, thicker, more difficult to manage. The density of the continuous flares renders movement nearly impossible.

Focusing all my will, I insist. I’m begging Kaida to shoot that immovable mass straight at me.

As his chest expands to draw in a massive breath, I brace myself.

With a grunt, I fling my wings wide, ignoring the fiery agony as my plummet abruptly stops and the winds rip at my feathers.

I jolt upright, ready to face whatever comes next, because giving up isn’t in my nature. Not when there’s still a fight to be won.

“No!” Bastian’s horrified scream somehow reaches me over the roar of wind and wingbeats. He’s panicked, terrified that Kaida’s flames will consume me.

I never thought to tell him I could redirect dragonfire. Because I’ve only done it the once. And never with dragonfire directed straight at me. Chirean blew fire while I was riding him, then dipped lower so that I had to push the danger away with my magic. It was a test to learn if I would make a good dragonrider for him, one he didn’t have to worry about protecting.

The drachen, ignoring the dragon at its back, spots its chance.

It stretches toward me, thinning itself out, becoming a blade of shadow aimed straight for my heart.

Not today, you creature of blighted darkness. Calling my flames with every inch of my flesh, I wrap myself in fire like a second skin.

Kaida’s roar splits the sky, and the world ignites in a blaze of fury and fire. Ice and snow melt with a hiss, and the sky is suddenly bright with even more light as a fireball the size of a warship rockets toward me.

Oh shit. That’s bigger than I thought it would be.

There’s a moment of worry, but I’m too far in to back out now. I mirror his attack with a snap of my wings and a sweep of my arms that sends only a Lark-sized fireball barreling to meet the first one.

The drachen is struck from both sides. With an eerie shriek, the creature twists and writhes. It shoots out from between our conjoined inferno, morphing from its physical body into phantom form. Now nothing more than an oozing black shadow, the creature glides away, out of sight.

Still very much alive. But so am I.