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O utside the Godskeep, Cora’s stomach dropped into a hollow pit as she stared at the creature circling in the sky overhead. Chill after chill shot through her as she took in those white scales, those feathered wings. There was no doubt what this creature was. Who this creature was.

It was Ferrah. The white dragon she’d met in El’Ara. Cora couldn’t help but remember the heat of Ferrah’s flames as she’d chased Cora in a rage.

Even more chilling was her next realization: this was irrefutable proof that Cora had been right, that Noah was indeed the true Morkara. If dragons were in her world, the Veil was torn.

Teryn placed a comforting hand on her lower back, but she could feel the tension radiating from his palm. The same tension etched the lines of his face. His jaw was slack, eyes haunted, as he stared at the creature. He hardly seemed to notice Berol flapping frantically over his shoulder, unable to land for the absence of the leather pad he normally wore when outdoors. Finding no good perch, she flew to the Godskeep roof instead. Teryn let out a shaky breath ending with, “Seven devils.”

The sentiment was echoed by those around them, muttered in gasps, whimpers, and startled cries. After the piercing screech had sounded, she, Teryn, and Larylis had left the Godskeep with a handful of guards and ordered their guests to remain inside. But when the second screech had rumbled the entire building, the others came rushing out. Master Arther had tried to calm the guests down, but he now stood silent, his eyes turned to the heavens as Ferrah swooped across the overcast sky and disappeared into the heavy clouds.

“Mareleau,” Larylis said, his voice strangled. “Noah.” As he rushed into the castle, Cora had her next revelation. Not only was the Veil torn, but Ferrah was here for the same reason she’d chased unicorns through the Veil and into the human world.

She was here for Ailan’s heir. The true Morkara. Mareleau and Noah.

The question was, what did she want with them? Was it enough to merely find them? She couldn’t imagine the dragon sought to harm them. Dragons were supposedly connected to the Morkara’s bloodline. Cora had drawn Ferrah’s wrath when Fanon had forced her to try to bond with the dragon, but…she had to believe Ferrah would react far less violently to El’Ara’s promised savior.

That was her hope, at least.

“You’ve got to be godsdamned kidding me,” came Lex’s voice. He and Lily came up beside them. “Was that a bloody dragon?”

Teryn gave a tight nod.

Lily turned pale as she glanced at her husband. “I thought your tale of unicorns and wraiths was strange enough.”

Captain Alden approached her queen with a bow. “Orders, Majesty?” Her voice held no quaver, but her composure was betrayed by her ashen face, the haunted look in her blue eyes. Cora had appointed Captain Alden to her royal guard for her battle experience. She’d fought for King Arlous at Centerpointe Rock and bore the scar on her cheek to prove it. She’d witnessed the horrors on that battlefield, beheld wraiths, the Roizan, and deadly vines wielded by magic. When Cora had taken the crown and worked with Larylis, Teryn, and Mareleau to staff her castle, Alden had been one of the first to gain a position. Yet even after all the captain had seen, she was clearly shaken.

Cora opened her mouth, but she didn’t know what to say.

“Shall I post archers?” Alden asked.

Archers. What the hell could archers do against a dragon? Arrows couldn’t combat fire, and she suspected they couldn’t pierce dragon scales either. Besides, Ferrah hadn’t attacked. Not yet, at least.

Memories of the dragon’s searing flames chasing her heels flooded her mind.

“Post them,” Cora said, and her voice wasn’t nearly as steady as Alden’s. “Defensive positions only. Shoot only if she attacks. Do not provoke her.”

Alden bowed, then rushed into the castle.

Cora wanted to feel comforted by the protection of the royal guards who remained behind, as well as the archers Alden would post, but her stomach only sank further. Dread filled every inch of her, blaring a warning.

Her mind went to her unicorn friend.

Valorre! She mentally reached out to him. He’d been out of range all morning. She suspected he was sore about being excluded from her wedding and had chosen to entertain himself far away. Still, she had to ensure he was all right. She remembered how frightened he’d been of Ferrah in El’Ara. Valorre, are you near?

Fornication! Yes, I’m near.

His mental reply brought her equal parts relief and confusion. The first word was entirely out of place. Are you all right? Are you safe from her?

I’m safe. They aren’t paying attention to me.

Cora’s blood went cold. They? There’s more than one?

I saw two. Excrement, this is bad .

She frowned at yet another out-of-place word. Fornication. Excrement. Since when did he randomly state such crass words? Valorre, are you trying to curse?

I would never place a curse on someone, even if I knew how .

No, I mean…is that your attempt at using expletives?

His only reply was a ripple of puzzlement.

If the situation weren’t so dire, she’d be amused, but this situation was far from amusing. According to Valorre, Ferrah wasn’t the only dragon here. She rushed to the other side of the courtyard outside the Godskeep, eyes to the sky, seeking any sign of wings among the clouds.

Teryn shadowed her steps, hand protectively on her lower back. Just minutes ago he’d touched her for far more pleasant reasons. The sealing of their marriage, their kiss. Everything had been perfect.

Then it had been shattered.

Resentment tightened her chest.

Teryn sucked in a breath. “Fire.”

Cora followed his line of sight to a column of gray smoke wafting into the air in the distance. Mother Goddess, she hoped that wasn’t a village. She blinked a few times, orienting herself with nearby geography. Her only solace was that there were no surrounding villages in that direction. There was, however, vast farmland.

The column grew denser, rising higher into the clouds.

Then a dark shape emerged above the trees. Cora made out the distinct silhouette of wings lifting a sinuous body into the sky.

Too fast the dragon approached, crossing the distance in a matter of wingbeats. And it didn’t take long for Cora to realize it wasn’t Ferrah. This dragon was probably twice as large with midnight-black scales and leathery wings instead of feathered ones. It flew over the courtyard, lower than Ferrah had dared to fly, eliciting cries of terror from the wedding guests.

Cora stepped back, pressing herself into Teryn. She flung out her hand and he grasped it tightly in his. Her heart pounded so hard she feared it would shatter her rib cage.

She held her breath as it flew past the castle, praying it would fully leave. Yet instead of soaring into the distance, the dragon circled around Ridine and made its descent. Its enormous wings pulsed through the air in heavy beats, slowing its momentum until it landed on one of the battlements. A funnel of air rushed over the courtyard, snatching a tendril of hair from Cora’s previously perfect updo.

No cries erupted from the battlements. No arrows shot through the sky. Captain Alden would still be readying the archers. Thankfully, the dragon didn’t attack. It merely perched upon the battlement like it was its nest. But what would happen once the archers arrived?

“Go. Just go,” Cora whispered, wishing she could use her magic to convince the creature to leave Ridine.

Another pair of wingbeats sounded overhead. Ferrah had returned. Following the black dragon’s lead, she circled over the castle before descending toward it. To Cora’s terror, she landed not on another one of the battlements, but directly upon the keep. And she didn’t nestle upon the roof like her companion. Instead, she gripped the crenellations and leaned over the edge, stretching her long neck until her head was level with the top row of windows.

Ferrah was looking for something. No, someone.

Cora knew exactly who. She’d known as soon as Larylis had uttered their names and charged into the castle. Was he with them already? Mareleau must be terrified either way.

A screech shattered the air, louder than anything she’d heard yet. Cora’s gaze whipped toward the black dragon. Its head was reared back, its attention locked on the next battlement over. Cora couldn’t see it from here, but she guessed Alden’s forces had arrived and that the dragon had noticed them. A red glow blazed between the scales on the dragon’s throat. Cora’s shout was drowned out by those around her as a burst of crimson flame shot from the dragon’s mouth.

Urgency propelled Cora toward the castle, though she didn’t know what she was doing. What the seven devils could she do? Perhaps the dragons weren’t here to harm Mareleau and Noah, but they were a danger to everyone else. To her archers. Her wedding guests. Her castle.

Her guards marched after her, as did Teryn.

“Orders, Majesty?” called the guards.

“Where are you going?” Teryn asked, taking her arm and pulling her to face him.

Panic raked claws down her throat. She didn’t know what orders to give. She’d asked Alden to post archers on the battlements and now they…

Mother Goddess, they might all be dead now.

What could she do?

What the bloody hell could any of them do?

Teryn gently grasped her shoulders in his hands. “We need to get the dragons away from Ridine,” he said, his voice deep and calming, serving as an anchor. Her tether to logic. “Is there anything we can do to aid that? Anything that will lessen the casualties? Anything you can do?”

He said the last part in a lower tone, though he needn’t have bothered. He was referring to her magic, but the guests in the courtyard were far too frightened to pay them any heed. And those of her royal guard knew of her magic. Or, at the very least, she’d never hidden it from them.

The question cleared some of her panic. She may not have the answers, but perhaps she could find them through her Art. The last thing she wanted to do was relax and turn inward, but she’d long ago learned the value of doing so.

Closing her eyes, she let out a slow exhale and rifled through her flurry of anxious emotions until she found the steady ones lurking beneath. She shifted her stance, feeling solid earth beneath the soles of her silk wedding slippers.

A line from the prophecy wended its way through her consciousness.

The unicorn will signify her awakening .

She frowned, unsure of what that had to do with this situation. Then she remembered. The dragons had sensed Mareleau’s awakening magic and had sent unicorns through the Veil to find her. Now that the dragons could enter the human world of their own accord, they could find Ailan’s heir themselves. That was why they were here.

She’d already gleaned as much.

Yet there was something she hadn’t touched on.

If the reason they could find Mareleau was her magic…

Cora’s eyes shot open as the solution dawned on her. It was a risk. There was a chance it might not work.

And she’d have to hurt Mareleau to do it.