Page 18 of Wild Bond (Wild Bond #1)

“S o, who won our little contest, Rin?” Zade asked when we were less than an hour’s flight from Dessin. “Who gave you the best gift?”

Zade had been goading me for hours on this. I could just make out his wild grin from where he sat with his back straight in Valla’s saddle, the dragon herself flying high and off to my right. Her and Skye’s wings were only a few feet apart.

Rake and Naasir flew to Skye’s left, on level with us. It was Rake who responded before I could. “That doesn’t matter now. We need to rise into the cloud cover. We’re coming up on the pass.”

I glanced ahead, and sure enough, the rocky walls of Dividian Pass rose on either side, marking the start of the griffin nesting grounds.

Zade laughed. “You’re just trying to change the subject. You’re bitter because you know I w—"

Shiny! Skye’s thought came through the bond, and I barely had time to grasp that she had seen a flash of something metal in the trees below before she pulled in her wings and dove downward.

“Skye, wait! Don’t—”

The rush of wind in my ears nearly drowned out Zade and Rake’s yells as we plunged. I looked back as Naasir dove after us.

And that was when a large, spiked bolt the size of a small tree trunk missed the black dragon by a hair’s breadth and struck Valla in the side, hitting her just below the shoulder.

Valla roared in pain as blood sprayed and her wing buckled. With a cry from Zade, dragon and rider plummeted towards the ground below. Horror filled me at the sight, and for a small moment, time seemed frozen as I tried to comprehend what just happened.

Then Skye and I reacted, our wills merging as one. I bent low over her back and squeezed my legs to her sides as she rocketed after them.

The wind whipped my hair and stung my eyes as I watched Valla careen in a tumbling spiral toward the treetops. The bolt still protruded from her side, but she still tried to right herself. It was nearly impossible with only one wing and at the speed they were traveling. Zade remained on her back, the fact that his legs were strapped in the only reason he was still in the saddle.

I couldn’t even begin to consider who had shot that bolt—or why. I was too focused on catching up to them.

Thank the Nine Skye was so fast.

Just before Valla hit the tops of the trees below us, Skye was able to swoop partially under the other female and slow her decent, partly breaking her fall. Unfortunately, Skye couldn’t stop Valla’s momentum completely, and unable to catch herself with a lame wing, Valla fell past Skye and slammed into the thick branch of a tree.

Skye was forced to pull back and unfurl her wings to their full extent so as not to crash along with them.

I made eye contact with Zade but could do nothing as the force of that initial hit threw Valla and her rider to the side as they plowed downward through the trees.

Trunks and limbs splintered, Zade yelled, there was a loud crack, and Valla bellowed a fresh sound of pain. They hit the ground with a deafening boom that echoed around us and I knew would be heard for miles. Valla rolled her body to protect Zade, taking the brunt of the hit, and collapsed in a broken, mangled heap.

Silence reigned for a few seconds. I didn’t breathe. But then Valla’s big chest expanded, and she let out a pained whimper—a sound I had never heard a dragon make before. But at least it meant she was still alive.

Luckily, Valla had just missed a sharp outcropping of rocks and slid several dozen yards into a small clearing of sorts, or at least a break in the tree cover. It was just big enough that Skye could land relatively close. I hastily unstrapped myself and scrambled off Skye’s back, sliding down her scales until my booted feet hit the hard earth.

“Zade!” I cried, as real fear for the rider who I was coming to think of as a friend prickled over my skin. “Zade, are you all right? Answer me!”

Valla’s slide had left deep gouges in the grass, leaves, and dirt of the forest floor, and I tried not to trip over them as I made my way to the dragon’s side.

Her wing was obviously broken from the fall, and part of the shaft of the bolt had broken off as well. Her beautiful yellow-green scales were riddled with deep cuts and scratches. Dragons healed swiftly, but she could still die if that spear had hit something vital. I couldn’t imagine the pain she must be in.

“Here!” Zade yelled, just as I came around Valla’s side and saw he was hanging precariously from one leg that was only barely still attached to the saddle. Overwhelming relief swept through me at the sight of him alive and uninjured, save for a few cuts and scrapes on his arms and face. Before I could help, he curled up and was able to get his foot free, but then landed hard on his hip.

In the next second he was up and moving to kneel by Valla’s head. He stroked her muzzle as she huffed and whimpered again. Her big yellow eyes took in her rider. His voice was softer than I had ever heard it as he spoke low to her. “You’re okay girl. We’re going to get you some help. You’ll be just fine.” I could see how hard he was working to keep the helpless rage, fear, and utter devastation from his face as he spoke to her. I knew that it was of little use, though. She could feel his emotions just as plainly as he could feel hers.

He glanced up at me, and the laughing, lighthearted jokester I had come to know was gone, and in his place was a calculating, deadly dragon rider. The change was so stark and sudden that I nearly took a step back from him.

The cold fury on his face gave me chills as he demanded, “Did you see who did this?”

I shook my head just as Naasir’s enraged roar rang out from high above.

In my concern for Valla and Zade, I hadn’t thought to consider where Rake was and why Naasir hadn’t followed after Skye and me. Zade and I stared above us at the loud cacophony of shrieks that accompanied Naasir’s roar and saw why.

We had alerted the griffins to our presence.

My heart sank and my blood went cold.

Over a dozen griffins filled the evening sky overhead, surrounding Naasir. Each one was about a third of Skye’s size, but they were all still larger than a horse. They truly were the perfect blend between two fierce animals, with the golden body, legs, and tail of a lion and the head and white feathered wings of a bird of prey. Those claws and beaks vicious weapons.

As I watched, two of the creatures raked their sharp claws down Naasir’s flank from either side, attacking him as a unit. Naasir’s head whipped around with a hiss before he captured one of the offending griffins in his jaws. He bit down with a sickening crunch, and the griffin went limp. He then tossed the now dead griffin at another that flew at him with a shriek. Meanwhile, Rake leaned down and sliced the wing of the other griffin, and it instantly released its hold on Naasir’s side. He then swung in the opposite direction and brought his sword up just in time to block the snapping beak of another beast intent on his throat.

Rake was magnificent to watch and sheer poetry in motion, but even he and Naasir couldn’t survive that many griffins on their own for long. Not to mention the fact that I could see several more of the animals flying our way from the direction of the pass. “We have to help them!” I screamed.

Zade nodded. “You stay with Valla and do what you can for her. I’ll take Skye and—"

A loud battle cry interrupted me, and I spun to see several men clad in armor spilling from the trees around us. There were at least a dozen, and they all carried weapons.

“Now who are these scum?” Zade complained.

“Probably the ones who shot Valla down,” I guessed. We had probably only had the tiny reprieve from them because it had taken them some time to find and make their way to us.

We had only moments until they reached us.

Pulling my daggers from their sheaths as Zade did the same with his sword, I turned to Skye. “Go and help Rake and Naasir,” I ordered.

I felt the stubborn refusal in the bond before she shook her head. The gesture was so human it threw me for a second. I shook it off. “Go! Now! We can handle these guys, but they need your help.”

Skye turned towards the approaching men, extended her neck, opened her mouth and released a pillar of flame so hot that my skin tightened anywhere it was exposed to the air. Several of the attackers dove out of the way but the one who was closest went up in towering flames. A few others swatted at their singed clothing. Skye gave me a self-satisfied huff, then launched into the air.

I didn’t watch her go since three of the men had finally reached us. Zade dispatched one of them with a swift strike from his sword across the man’s throat, so fast that I barely saw it happen. As he turned to engage the second, I was left with the third.

He came at me with a sword. I deflected his swipe with one of my daggers, then swung around with the other. He leapt back, and my blade just missed his mid-section. He swung down with his sword again, and I again deflected the blow, but this time I pressed my advance and leapt forward. As I rammed my knee into his gut, he bent forward reflexively, which I had been counting on, and brought my other knee up into his face. He cried out in pain and toppled backward, moaning as he hit the ground and dropped his sword.

Before I could decide what to do with him, another attacker engaged me. He was a big man, nearly twice my size. This one was more experienced, and it was all I could do to keep his sword from landing a blow. I blocked and deflected strike after strike. I watched him carefully but couldn’t find a way past his defenses. I crossed my daggers in front of me to halt a particularly vicious hit from his weapon and saw the first man had recovered and was approaching from the side. He was only a few feet away and pulled his sword back as if to skewer me.

Instinct kicked in, and taking advantage of some of that dragon rider speed and strength, I shoved the bigger man back with a grunt of effort, spun, and knocked the first man’s sword aside before shoving my blade into his chest.

His eyes widened in shock, and for the first time I registered the copper skin and midnight hair. This man was Zehvitian. Why were Zehvitians attacking us? Our countries were supposed to be at peace. And if they were, why would Zehvi send humans to attack dragon riders? Why not send riders of their own?

All these thoughts fell through my mind in an instant, but all were halted as the man slipped from my blade and landed hard on the ground. I watched the light leave his eyes as the brown depths turned dull and vacant.

Suddenly, all went quiet in my head. All went quiet around me too, as if I were temporarily deaf.

I had just killed a man.

I had seen people die before. of course, even had people killed in front of me. But I had never taken a life myself.

Not until now.

So many emotions swirled inside me, mixed with the adrenaline from the fight. I stared at the now dead man, and couldn’t make sense of them all.

Then my legs were swept out from under me. My moment of distraction had allowed my other attacker time to recover, and it had just cost me.

I landed on my back on the forest floor, and for a suspended moment I caught a glimpse of Naasir in the sky overhead burning a griffin as it soared above him. The red-orange flames created a beautiful arch.

Then my big attacker’s sour, angry face came back into focus. He towered over me; the tip of his sword held only a few inches from my throat. “You little bitch!” he spat as he kicked one of the daggers from my hand with his booted foot and stepped on my wrist with the other. The pain was acute; it felt like he was crushing the delicate bones under his weight. “You’re gonna pay for that.” He jerked his head toward his dead comrade that lay a few feet away.

I was vaguely aware of Zade fighting with several more men off to my right, but he was too far away to render any aid, and Valla too injured.

I had one hand free but no idea where my dropped dagger had landed. I peered around frantically looking for any other possible weapons.

“No!” another of the attackers suddenly yelled to the man standing over me. “Remember, she’s not to be harmed!” That was definitely a Zehvitian accent. But it was his words that caught my attention the most. Why wouldn’t they want to harm me?

The man over me halted, no doubt trying to decide whether it would be worth killing me despite whatever orders he had been given. That second of hesitation was all the time I needed. I reared back from his sword and kicked out at the side of his knee with all my strength. Something cracked, and he cried out as he fell to his other knee. He cursed and lifted his sword. I guess the desire to kill me won. But I had already reached to the side and grasped a large rock I had noticed earlier. Without hesitation, I swung it around as I sat up and hit him as hard as I could in the temple. The man’s eyes rolled back in his head, and he crumpled forward, landing partially on top of me.

I shoved him aside and scrambled to my feet just as the man who had spoken approached me. Dropping the rock, I picked up the unconscious—or possibly dead—man’s sword, still holding my last dagger in my other hand.

I still wasn’t as comfortable with a sword as I was with my knives, but my lessons with Dembe had me feeling somewhat confident with the larger weapon.

“We’re not here to kill you, girl. Just need to take you with us,” the Zehvitian said conversationally, as if we were discussing what we’d had for breakfast.

“Well in that case,” I replied, lacing my voice with false enthusiasm.

The man’s response was drowned out by a piercing shriek from overhead. My attention was drawn to a flash of movement in the air behind him.

I inhaled sharply just as a griffin swooped down and snatched up the man, lifting him a few dozen feet into the air with a beat of its mighty feathered wings. The creature, which was both beautiful and terrifying this close up, let out an ear-shattering cry and hovered there for a suspended moment. Then the griffin closed its beak over the screaming man’s head, gripped him in its long deadly talons and tore the man in two.

I blinked in shock and felt both terror and disgust as I stared at the griffin and tried not to look at the . . . parts . . . it now held.

At the same time, I could feel Skye checking on me in the bond. She was currently fighting a few griffins of her own, but at my sudden rush of fear and horror at what I had just witnessed, she temporarily focused her attention on me.

I was unable to reassure her I was fine, because it was at that moment that the griffin dropped the rest of the remains and flew at me.

I dove to the side and rolled, just managing to avoid the animal’s outstretched talons.

The griffin screeched in outrage as it rose back into the sky.

I dashed a few yards to my left where the small outcropping of rocks created a jagged sort of overhang. I took shelter underneath, measly though it was. But at least it provided some protection from anything attacking from above.

I peeked upward but saw no griffins in my immediate vicinity. I clutched the dagger I still held, having lost the sword somewhere while trying to dodge the griffin. There were several of our now dead attackers scattered across the ground. Many more than the three I had dealt with—at least a dozen. My respect for Zade’s abilities grew as I surveyed the damage he had wrought. I knew he was obviously not a pushover since he was a trained dragon rider, but his teasing and easy-going manner made me forget that he was just as deadly as Rake or Dembe.

Zade was now standing in front of Valla, defending his dragon from several attackers. Valla now lay partially on her stomach, snarling and snapping at any of the men who came too near, but she was still too severely injured to do much else. Her sides rose and fell rapidly like a large bellows, as if even the small amount of energy she was expending cost her.

We had to remove that bolt as soon as possible and set her wing so that she could start to heal.

But first things first.

Zade was dealing with the four remaining attackers—of the human variety anyway. I darted out into the open to help him, just as a pair of griffins flew down, one aiming for the group of fighting humans and one for the downed dragon.

Zade bent low, his opponents hit the ground, and the griffin missed them by a few feet. When the griffin swept by overhead, Zade rose and swung his sword upward in an incredibly fast move, slicing deep into one of the griffin’s back legs. The creature screamed and immediately began to retreat, rising higher in the sky.

The second griffin was now hovering over Valla’s wounded side, and I watched as it clamped its massive beak on Valla’s broken wing.

A dragon’s hide was nearly impenetrable and obviously fireproof, which was why dragon riders made their armor from dragonscales, but it could be penetrated by some things, like long range metal projectiles. I worried the sharp beak and talons of a griffin were on that list as well. A dragon’s wings were more pliable and therefore more vulnerable, and that was why the griffin went for it.

Valla roared in pain and lurched to the side, trying to dislodge the griffin but with no success.

Zade looked back at the sound and almost got himself decapitated when he nearly failed to block a sword strike in time. Zade fought valiantly but was unable to help Valla, pinned down as he was with his injured dragon at his back.

Almost without thought, I changed course and found myself charging towards Valla and the griffin rather than Zade. I wasn’t really sure what I was going to do, but I had to help Valla.

An insane idea formed in my head as I ran.

I reached Valla and barely even slowed my pace as I ran up her tail. It created a sort of ramp up toward where the griffin still held on to her wing.

I nearly lost my footing as Valla wrestled with the griffin, but I remained focused on my goal and managed to stay upright.

Only a few more feet.

Skye protested violently in the bond as she realized what I intended, but I pushed it to the back of my mind.

“Rin, what are you—”

I didn’t hear the rest of what Zade shouted as I leapt off the dragon and threw myself at the griffin.

I tackled it in midair, my arms going around its neck and my blade sinking deep into its feathered flesh.

The griffin’s beak tore free from Valla as it screeched in pained surprise. We dipped wildly, nearly colliding with the ground before the griffin flapped its wings and we launched skyward.

My intention had been to drop to the ground after dislodging the griffin from Valla, but the animal was tossing me about so violently I feared I would be impaled by the beast’s razor-sharp talons if I let go now.

As its wings continued to beat, and we rose higher and higher into the sky, I glanced down from where I hung preciously at the griffin’s side. My arms were still clutched for dear life around its neck, the stuck blade creating a handle for me to grasp onto as the griffin thrashed sharply, trying to buck me off.

The ground and Zade’s shocked face rapidly grew farther and farther away. In seconds we had already risen well past the tops of the trees.

The stench of wild animal and coppery blood hit me as I realized that letting go was no longer an option. If I fell from this height, even with my increased healing abilities, I would not survive.

The force of gravity from the griffin’s upward flight pressed down on me and made it hard to do anything but hold on.

I waited, my blood pumping in my ears so it nearly drowned out everything else. The griffin twisted suddenly to avoid another griffin. I used the momentum as I was flung sideways to swing one leg over the griffin’s neck just in front of its wings. I clamped down hard with my thighs, trying for dear life to stay on.

It occurred to me then that I was essentially riding a griffin and that several other griffins surrounded us. The griffin had flown us directly into the battle.

It was at that same moment that I also saw the black dragon above me in the air, though he was still quite a distance away.

I made eye contact with Rake.

His eyes went wide. I saw sheer panic and dawning horror on his face and in those blue, blue eyes.

The griffin suddenly pitched forward, and I lost my grip on its neck. I was flung into the air and felt utterly weightless for a moment . . .

Then I was falling.