Page 24

Evelina

Evelina did a final check over Willow the next morning and cleared her to go back to riding.

“Take it easy the next few days,” she said firmly. “Gloriana mended the wound, but if you push it too much, it may reopen. Your body needs time to fully heal.”

Willow nodded her head, eager to get back. She rested a hand on Evelina’s shoulder, her eyes crinkling at the corners with her smile. “Thank you.” Her voice was as warm as honey. “This isn’t the way I expected for us to meet, but it’s nice to see a few more Woodland around here.”

Gloriana came in through the front door, holding a large basket filled with bandages, herbs, and beeswax for mixing salve. “New foot soldiers arrived. They brought a few baskets that Lorene packed.”

Gloriana set the basket down on a cot. She smiled at Willow and put the back of her hand against her forehead.

“No fever still.” Gloriana hummed. “Stop back if you notice any changes with your wound.”

Willow nodded and gave her thanks again before slipping out. Evelina helped Gloriana separate the new supplies, shelving them and recording the stock on scrolls of parchment .

“Brielle thought it would be beneficial for us to take turns riding with each of the wyverns over the next several days,” Gloriana said as they finished the last of their organization. “She wants the wyverns to be comfortable around us—in case we need to fly with them to an active scene. Plus, they won’t try to bite our heads off for getting close to their Rider while they’re wounded.”

Evelina nodded, knowing how vital this was as the healers of the Alpha Fleet. But she wasn’t ready to see Daimon yet, not after their last encounter in the forest. “So one of us will stay here while the other is riding?”

Gloriana nodded. “Same as at the palace. One healer should always man the healer’s room. You can ride with Brielle today and I’ll go with her tomorrow.”

That she could do. Evelina was most comfortable with Brielle and had already ridden Vero once on the way here. She turned to leave, a little more eager than the last time she had to ride the beast.

But Gloriana stopped her before she opened the door. “Are you doing all right? You haven’t seemed to be sleeping much since we got here.”

The reminder alone made Evelina yawn. “It’s a big adjustment,” she answered honestly. “And pressure. The soldiers are counting on us.”

Gloriana smiled softly, her eyes shining with understanding. “Just remember we can’t heal others if we’re not healed ourselves.”

Evelina nodded slowly. Gloriana always knew what to do and say—when to be soft and when to be firm. No one could understand better than Gloriana could. She wasn’t only her mentor; she was her friend. Evelina couldn’t have done any of this without her.

Slipping out of the cabin, Evelina found Brielle feeding Vero large slabs of raw meat behind the fleet’s cabin. The wyverns all slept there, nestled into a cavern tall enough to fit each of them. Zephyr and Codax were nowhere to be seen, but the remaining four wyverns slept in a pile behind Vero and Brielle.

“How’s Willow faring?” Brielle said as she threw another piece of meat. Vero snatched it out of the air, his massive jaws snapping with a loud crack as they closed around it.

“She’ll need to take it easy for a few days, but she’s mostly in the clear.”

“Good.” Brielle nodded, then added with a laugh, “Though I doubt she’ll take it easy.” She held the meat out to Evelina. Veros’s eyes tracked it closely. “Toss him this and he’ll warm right up to you. Mountain goats are his favorite.”

Evelina hesitated and shuffled her feet nervously. Vero could bite her hand off in the blink of an eye.

Brielle shook the meat. “Come on, he won’t grab it until you throw it.”

Evelina slowly reached out for it, her attention set firmly on the wyvern. Vero looked ready to bite her hand off. But he sat perfectly still.

“Now toss it in the air toward him,” Brielle encouraged.

Evelina took a deep breath and slung the meat up. Vero snapped it out of the air before it could descend, causing Evelina to jump back a step.

“Wonderful.” Brielle patted his neck. “Now we ride.” She pointed to the rope, reminding Evelina where to step to leverage her body up. It was smoother this time, but still awkward as she flung her body into the saddle. Brielle sat in front of her, motioning for her to hold on.

“Wings up, V,” Brielle commanded, not giving Evelina any time to adjust before Vero spread his wings out and pushed off the ground. She felt her stomach bottom out again and she closed her eyes as a wave of nausea rolled through her body. The trees beside her blurred and wind whipped her hair across her face. Once they reached the clouds, Vero straightened out, his wings smoothly flapping every few moments .

“We’ll make a small circle around the camp before we head back,” Brielle shouted over the wind. “Just hold on!”

They glided through the clouds until Evelina began to feel at ease atop the beast, the wind calmer with their relaxed flight.

Vero’s head snapped to the right, his ears flattening. He growled, seeing something Evelina couldn’t.

“What is it?” Evelina whispered, her heart racing.

Brielle pointed down through a break in the clouds. Evelina squinted. It was hard to see from so far, but it looked like figures were moving through openings where the trees didn’t cover.

“A rebel group just behind the ridge,” Brielle hissed. “They’re headed in the direction of the camp.”

Evelina froze.

Brielle turned Vero around, dropping altitude to take a closer look. “I’ll take you back to the camp and?—”

“We have to stop them,” Evelina said quickly. From what she could see, there were at least twenty rebels. Not enough for a strategic attack on the camp, but enough that one of them could run off and tell more rebels where they were.

Brielle bit her lip, clearly torn. “I have to take you back,” she said, but her eyes were glued to the rebels fast approaching their hideout.

“No!” Evelina gasped. “There’s no time, you know that.”

There was a pause as Brielle considered, and Evelina waited for her to realize the inevitable.

“Daimon’s gonna kill me,” Brielle muttered before letting out a sharp breath. “Vero, call for backup.”

Vero ascended higher into the clouds and released an ear-piercing screech. The figures beyond the ridge scattered, losing them the element of surprise. Brielle patted his side twice and he flew higher until the clouds covered them completely.

“Daimon and Keir are on patrol,” she explained. “We wait on them before attacking. Stay behind me at all times and keep your eyes on what’s happening below us. If you see anyone attacking, you shout their direction, okay? ”

Evelina’s hand trembled where it was still wrapped around Brielle’s waist.

Brielle twisted around to face Evelina, her eyes hard. “Daimon and Keir will take the lead. I won’t let Vero get too close with you riding.”

The sound of wings flapping came from their left. Vero shifted, his ears rotating toward the sound. He let out a small chatter and the flapping wings instantly moved closer.

“We have the advantage here,” assured Brielle, as if thinking out loud. “Three wyverns against twenty rebels will be a quick fight.”

Zephyr and Codax broke through the clouds with Keir and Daimon atop them. Daimon’s gaze landed on Evelina, the small metal accessories of his armor glinting in the sun with the movement. The wyverns forced themselves to hover as they formed their natural formation with Daimon at the center.

“What is she doing here, Brielle?” Daimon demanded, his eyes wide with anger.

“No time,” Brielle said quickly—firmly. “There are about twenty rebels beyond the ridge. They’ve already heard Vero and will likely be preparing for a ranged attack.”

Daimon hissed in frustration but nodded his understanding. He wouldn’t even look at Evelina, as if unable to bear her presence there.

“Keep her as far back as you can,” he said sharply. “We drop down once they’re directly below us. If we’re quick enough, we can end this in one strike.”

Keir and Brielle nodded. Daimon’s eyes flicked to Evelina before turning and patting Zephyr.

She struggled to decipher the difference between his disdain and his desperate care for her, fumbling around the mixed signals of his concern and his disregard.

But there was no time to think.

“Keir.” With the one word, Daimon had the attention of the Aegis, his eyes sharpening as he maneuvered Codax beside Zephyr without hesitation.

Evelina watched with a mix of horror and awe as the two wyverns nosedived out of the sky simultaneously. Vero flapped his wings restlessly.

“Steady,” Brielle whispered.

Screams sounded below, followed by a roar from one of the wyverns. The roar wasn’t a battle cry—it was a screech of pain.

“Hold on!” Brielle shouted. Vero dropped out of the sky, his wings tucked in tight to his sides. Wind hit Evelina so hard she could hardly open her eyes. Her hair whipped behind her as she squeezed Brielle’s waist as tightly as she could.

The battle had made its way to a clearing in the trees—or one that had been burned away, at least. Keir was shooting fire at the group while Codax swept them close to the ground. Brielle brought Vero beside Codax and released a torrent of fire.

“No magic suppressant!” Keir shouted over at them. “My fire is holding strong.”

Evelina’s shoulders relaxed a fraction. She glanced up, looking for Daimon. Zephyr hovered high above them with Daimon on her back, dodging arrows from all sides. His gaze flickered to Evelina, his eyes sweeping up and down her body like a soldier assessing another for injury. Concern tugged at his brows as his eyes met hers. Her throat constricted as she caught a glimpse of what was coming; an arrow headed straight toward him.

She opened her mouth to scream—to warn him. But it was too late, the arrow slicing across his chest before she could make a sound.

Daimon slumped against his wyvern, his arm dangling over the side of her neck. If he had already passed out, he had to be losing blood—fast. Panic clawed at Evelina’s chest. Her healer training kicked in, her mind already working through the small window of time they would have to get the bleeding under control .

Zephyr reared back and exposed her belly more, shielding Daimon almost entirely.

“I need you to get me to Daimon,” Evelina shouted at Brielle.

Brielle looked up and growled in frustration. “We have to take care of these?—”

“On your right!” Keir shouted.

An arrow flew straight at them. Evelina screamed, her life flashing before her eyes as the arrow flew toward her head. She closed her eyes and waited for the searing pain, for the few breaths it would take for her to bleed out and die.

But the pain didn’t come. Maybe it happened so quickly she had already passed on to Caelum.

“Princess,” Brielle breathed.

Evelina slowly—cautiously—opened her eyes.

The arrow was hovering in front of her face, frozen in midair, the tip inches away from her forehead. Brielle reached forward, her fingers trembling as she plucked the arrow from where it was stopped. The iron-tipped head was carved with dark runes, a soft, pulsing glow emanating from it.

“How did you do that?” Evelina gasped.

Brielle held the arrow out and then looked back at Evelina, eyes wide. “I didn’t do that,” she said slowly. “You did.”

Vero roared and dropped out of the sky, hurtling toward the ground as another cursed arrow whizzed past them. Evelina didn’t have time to process Brielle’s words. There were only a couple of rebels left now. Brielle and Keir took them out within minutes, but Evelina’s head was still spinning.

Keir guided Codax to the trees, doing a final sweep to ensure they got them all. Once he gave the all-clear, Brielle raced up toward Daimon. Zephyr whined. Evelina could swear she saw panic in the beast’s golden eyes.

“Daimon,” Brielle shouted.

He stirred, groaning and holding his shoulder.

“He’s alive.” Evelina sighed with relief. “I need to see his wound.”

Brielle nodded. “Meet us at the healer’s cabin,” she told Zephyr.

Keir brought up the rear while they all raced back to camp. Evelina prayed to Eurydice that Daimon could hold on long enough for them to make it back.