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Dragon School: Dark Night

Dragon School, Volume 10

Sarah K. L. Wilson

Published by Sarah K. L. Wilson, 2018.

This is a work of fiction. Similarities to real people, places, or events are entirely coincidental.

DRAGON SCHOOL: DARK NIGHT

First edition. April 19, 2018.

Copyright © 2018 Sarah K. L. Wilson.

Written by Sarah K. L. Wilson.

Table of Contents

Title Page

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Behind the Scenes:

For Mom, with love.

Chapter One

Boom. Boom. Boom.

I leapt at the sound of pounding on the rock wall behind me – it was more of a massive vibration than a sound. More of the feeling of a small earthquake than fists on a door – though that was what was causing it. Behind me – just behind the rock wall – dozens of Ifrits were pounding. If they found a single crack, they would slide in and rip us to pieces. I bit my lip and told my mind to calm itself, but my heart raced all on its own.

That’s right, Raolcan reminded me. Deep, easy breaths. Don’t let it take your clear thought. We will not die here.

How could he be so certain?

Dragon princes don’t die in holes like rats.

Then where did they die? And could we avoid going there?

“Amel,” Savette whispered urgently.

I followed her gaze to where everyone else in the room was kneeling and then hurriedly scrambled off of Raolcan to join them.

“Get up,” a man beside the litter said. He was burly and encased in a shining metal breastplate and greaves, his dragon helm obscuring his face. “The Dominar – glory to his reign – is not conscious. He was gravely injured in our flight. I am Lieutenant Iskaris of the Dominar’s Dragoons and I require your aid.”

Fear like ice shot through me, chilling me to the core. This was Iskaris? The man that the Dusk Covenant was sending messages to? We must keep anything important from him.

Be careful with those messages you have. You haven’t given them to the Top Rider, have you?

Why would I do that?

You’ll have to wait until the Dominar is conscious and give them to him yourself, if you can. Or to Hubric if he comes around first.

I swallowed. It wouldn’t be hard to keep them hidden, but the Dominar was missing a limb and his pallet was soaked with blood. Would he survive this?

“Amel Leafbrought,” Ashana Willowspring said. “Lead the Dominar’s dragoons to the area we set apart for Hubric. We can attend to the injured there, including the Dominar. I’ll see to the defense of this entrance, Lieutenant.”

“Actually,” Iskaris said, overriding her. “I think real warriors should see to the defense. Tredwell, Curnan, see to it.”

Two men saluted, moving tiredly toward the door, as if men in armor could do what dragons could not. Ashana stood to one side of the door to the great hall, one hand on her hip and a single eyebrow raised in a way that made me squirm even though it was directed at the Lieutenant.

Anyone who ignores the Top Rider is playing with fire.

Anyone who was dealing with the Dusk Covenant was playing with a lot worse things than fire. The Lieutenant was in league with the demons outside our door, whether anyone else realized that or not. With a grimace, I hobbled forward to lead him within our defenses. It felt wrong – like drinking poison on purpose.

When dragons drink poison, it burns up within us just like disease. It can’t survive our fiery bellies.

Handy. Too bad I wasn’t a dragon.

Be that fiery belly. Bring him in, then burn him up.

I clenched my jaw, determined to do just that if I saw the opportunity.

“This way,” I murmured, gesturing for them to follow me through the door. The Dragoons already had the Dominar’s litter unhooked from the Silver dragons and were shuffling forward with it. No one had told us about Silver Dragons in our Dragon School training.

No Silvers are given as Dragon School tribute. They are dedicated to the Dominar as a part of our treaty with Haz. The riders of the Silvers come from the ranks of the Dragoons and are powerful, dignified warriors.

It was surprising that Raolcan wasn’t Silver then.

Are you suggesting that Silver is better than Purple?

Never.

Good. I don’t need flashy scales to show my majesty. Which is good, because right now these two need help. They suffered grievous injuries as they fled and cannot fly.

“Were you hurt in the battle?” Iskaris asked, eyeing my bad leg as I led him through the Great Hall toward the room we were tending to Hubric in. Iskaris’ eyes narrowed when he saw the refugees within and a second stab of ice went through me. I could sense his coldness toward them. Was I the only person here who thought life was important?

Don’t be dramatic. There’s Savette and Hubric and the Dominar, and I don’t think that Ashana is nearly as cold as you have judged her to be. She won’t leave them now that Ifrits are banging down the door.

We’d see about that.

“I’m a cripple,” I said easily. Of all the threats that Iskaris posed, the threat to my dignity was the smallest. I led them within Hubric’s room. “There’s a bed here.”

I watched as the lieutenant looked around the room and sniffed. “It will do. Clear this other man out of here.”

“He’s still recovering from an arrow wound and fever,” I said, defensively.

“We’ll keep this room clear for the Dominar,” the lieutenant said. “Only those trusted by me may enter.”

His dominant personality and thick muscles made me feel small and insignificant, but someone had to speak for the injured, and I was the only one here to do it.

“Hubric needs rest and a place to recover. So do the Dominar and your wounded men. It will be easier to tend them all in one place.”

His glare made me want to take a step back, but I took a deep breath instead and kept my feet where they were.

“Did you tend that man’s wounds?” he asked as two of the Dragoons laid the Dominar on the bed Savette had slept in the night before.

I had to swallow to make my mouth wet enough to speak. “Yes.”

“Then tend to the Dominar, Dragon Rider. The next time I give an order and you speak back, you can learn what it is to feel my boot on your neck.”

I nodded, fear making my mouth dry again and my palms sweaty, but I’d kept Hubric safe for a while longer and maybe, just maybe, I’d be able to help both my mentor and my ruler recover.

Chapter Two

I was afraid to touch the Dominar. Were there rules about how to touch the ultimate authority of your land?

If I had to guess, I’d say the biggest rule is to keep him from dying.

Nervously, I unwound the cloak that draped his form. It stuck to the drying blood on the pallet underneath him and I had to rip it in places to detangle it. Someone had made the pallet by stretching tent cloth over two poles. When the dragoons set it down they had just laid the entire contraption on the narrow bed.

Behind me, I heard two of the dragoons tending a stab wound in a third man’s leg, but I had to concentrate on this. It felt strange that they weren’t doing it themselves. After all, did I look like a healer?

They’re rattled and Iskaris is warring within. The Ifrits aren’t behaving as he expected. He has ordered his men to tend their own wounds while you see to the Dominar. I can’t tell if he wants you to fail or succeed in keeping him alive. I’m not sure that he knows either. Personally, I’d like the Dominar to live.

That made two of us. I gently unbuckled the clasps of the thick leather clothing on his torso, examining him for wounds. So far, his arm was the only severe wound. The sight of the blood-soaked bandaged stump where his arm had been made my mouth feel dry. I tried not to look as I checked for any other bleeding. I had to strip him down to his underclothes to look, but the rest of his body was fine – bruised and discolored, but not stabbed or shot with arrows. I replaced what clothing I could, spread a sheet over him, and gingerly lifted his crown to check his head for wounds.

“Don’t,” a voice said from behind me. Ashana was there, looking furtively around her. “Removing his crown is a death sentence. Look at the pallet. The blood isn’t coming from his head.”

“It can’t be comfortable to lay with your head in a metal mask,” I said. I followed her gaze to the dragoons behind her. They were talking in a close huddle as they stitched and bandaged wounds.

“I’ll help you with the arm,” she said in a tight voice. Her eyes were sharp and careful, but her tension wasn’t directed at me.

“I’m sorry about Rawlins and Danver,” I said as we unwrapped the bandage around his stump of an arm.

“So am I. We were friends for many years. They both were a great help to me in managing Color affairs and I will miss them every day now that they are gone.” Her voice was sad, but firm, like she was both mourning and persevering all at once.

I enjoy her strength. A truly strong mind is rare in humans.

“Feed the fire. Then go to the storeroom and find us a small metal pot and some tar,” she said, her voice clipped and tight. She was looking at the wound with a deep furrow in her brow.

I swallowed hard and moved to obey. It was good to have orders to follow.

“And Amel?” she said right before I left.

“Yes?”

“You did well out there. You are one of us now.” She pulled one of her scarves off her arm and tossed it to me. “Wear our color with pride.”

“Thank you.”

The look in her eye made me feel a foot taller. I held the scarf reverently as I turned to leave the room, my face hot with pleasure. She’d given me her own scarf to wear.

It’s traditionally given by your mentor. I suppose with Hubric ill it makes sense that she’d give you hers.

The scarf was a damask silk, embroidered with swirls and dragon claws. I tied it around my neck, just under my leather collar, as I walked. There would be more purple scarves, but none so precious as my first. I wanted to keep it where it was easily seen by anyone passing. It was the exact color of Raolcan’s scales.

Wear your purple with pride. I certainly do.

I hobbled through the Great Hall, noticing that the refugees had cleared out of the hall, except for one older man who sat near the large fire but also near the door to their sleeping quarters. He was leaning back in a chair as if he were asleep, but his eyes glittered as he followed my movements, so I wasn’t fooled. He was watching over his people. In the middle of the Great Hall, Iskaris spread out maps, his healthy warriors – ten of them – arranged around him. I hurried past them to the storeroom, keeping my eyes to myself. It would do me no good to draw more of his attention.

When I reached the storeroom, I closed the door and breathed a sigh of relief. Iskaris was pure trouble. He was a traitor. And we were walled up in here with him. What were we going to do?

“Is that you, Amel?” Savette whispered from the shadows.

“What are you doing in here?” I whispered back.

“I can feel them, Amel. The Ifrits. They are going to find a way in.”

Chapter Three

“Soon?” I asked, my whisper strained.

“I don’t know, but soon enough. I need a way to find more strength. It was all I could do to hold those few back before they drove us into this place and now their numbers grow by the second.”

I swallowed, feeling lightheaded for a moment. Their numbers grew?

“Do you think some of these herbs might help you?” I asked, stepping behind some shelves as I scanned for a pot and tar. The pot was easy enough, but where would people put tar, and why had Ashana asked for it in the first place?

“I don’t know. I just didn’t know what else to do. I don’t like the way that Iskaris is looking at me.”

I clenched my teeth. That sounded even more ominous. Didn’t he realize that she was our only defense if the Ifrits broke in? What we needed was more information. That and a way out.

“Do you think he knows that you know the truth about him?”

“No. I would be able to tell if he did.” She shook her head, following me as I searched for tar. It wasn’t with the herbs or the kitchen supplies. I moved to the back wall where the stone was rough like they hadn’t finished carving out the storeroom. Had they planned to expand it someday? There was a rack of tools along that wall.

“Then how is he looking at you?”

“Like he’s worried. I think that somehow... No. That’s crazy.”

“What’s crazy?” I stopped by a rack of hand tools and Savette leaned in close so that her lips were only a hair’s width from my ear.

“I think he’s working with the Ifrits.”

Ice shot through me, lingering afterward in a way that made my skin feel too tight. When she said it like that, it seemed obvious. After all, the Dusk Covenant had some sort of deal with the Ifrits, and Iskaris was definitely Dusk Covenant.

If there was ever a time that we needed more information, it was now. And where could we find information other than those messages I’d been given?

I pulled them out of my waistband and furtively slipped the first message out of my waistband. Savette nodded beside me.

“If there’s anything else in there that could help, we need to know. Things have changed. What were you looking for back here?”

“Tar.”

“I’ll find it while you read. There’s something about this storeroom. I keep feeling like I need to be here.” She began to search the shelves while I skimmed one message after another. I’d read most of them before, but it felt necessary to re-read them in case there was something I’d missed before. Supply lists. News from Dominion City that seemed to have little importance. The last note I read was the only one that seemed significant.

Comard Eaglespring to the Dominar:

Glory to the Dominar,

I will lead your armies out, heading north at first light to assist in recovering your person and defending the north from threat of engagement. We will take the path of Haz in our advancement and suggest you meet us at the Maiden’s Head if possible. I have left the city under the defensive guard of General Honorspur and Grandis Elfar of Dragon School who has brought to us the Chosen One of Legend. Perhaps this will finally placate Haz’drazen. Once again, she sent an emissary protesting our handling of Baojang and making demands regarding our disposition of resources. I remain concerned about the rumors reaching my ears of a traitor among your guard. I must reiterate the need for care in telling friend from foe and must remind you that if you are required to take a darker path you should remember the words of Ibrenicus.

In faith,

Comard Eaglespring

What in the world was that last part about?

“Tar,” Savette said, handing me a small pot of tar. I jumped at her words, hurriedly stuffing the note back into my belt.

“Anything interesting?” she asked, but she seemed to already know.

“One thing, but I don’t know what it is. I’d better hurry back with the tar. Are you safe here?”

“I don’t know.” She bit her lip. “I’m not seeing anything that will give me the energy I need.”

“Go see Raolcan. Sometimes he has good ideas.”

Sometimes? That’s harsh.

She nodded and we slipped out of the storeroom, splitting up to head to our goals. As I hurried past the table of dragoons a hand wrenched my elbow, pulling me off balance. I fell, barely catching myself, the pot and tar clattering to the floor.

“I barely even touched you and you drop everything?” an annoyed voice asked.

“I walk with a crutch,” I said, pulling myself back to my feet. I’d bruised my good knee. It throbbed under my leather pants.

Iskaris snorted. Of course, it would be him grabbing my arm. What did he want, and would he see in my eyes that I distrusted him? Would he realize why?

I avoided eye contact, using the excuse of recovering the tar and pot.

“What do you have there?” he asked.

“Supplies for the Dominar’s wound.”

“Did you or your master have any messages when you arrived here?”

I hadn’t expected that. What did I say?

It would be unlikely that neither of you had messages.

“Yes,” I said, trying to cover the flood of heat to my face by adjusting my load of tar and pot.

“You can deliver them to me,” Iskaris said. “It’s important that we have all the information available to plan our next move.”

If I did that he’d know. I clenched my jaw. How did I tell him know without drawing suspicion?

“I’ll check to see if there are any for you after I finish helping with the Dominar’s wounds.”

Nice.

He shook his head. “Bring all of them right away. It’s essential to our planning to have them.”

“I ... I... I...”

Maybe you don’t remember this, since you didn’t listen to me when I told you not to read them, but NO ONE is supposed to read those messages except for the recipient. You can tell him that.

I cleared my throat, but my voice still came out in a croak. “I can’t do that.”

“You can’t?” There was an edge to his voice.

“It’s our duty to keep our messages private.” I was such a hypocrite.

Better a hypocrite than a traitor.

Wasn’t a hypocrite a traitor to themselves?

Just hold the line. I’m sending help.

“It’s your duty to help in the defense of the Dominar, glory to his reign. Or have you forgotten who is in that room beyond?”

I swallowed.

“Answer me.”

What was I going to say?

“Amel?” Ashana Willowspring stepped out into the Great Hall with her arms over her chest. “What is keeping you? We need that tar hot or risk losing the Dominar’s life to infection.”

Iskaris straightened, but his whisper rang in my ears as I hurried to follow Ashana. “We’re not done, Sworn.”

Chapter Four

“Put the tar in the pot on the fire and heat it up,” Ashana said briskly when I entered the room. The wounded dragoons were nowhere to be seen, leaving only Ashana, Hubric and the Dominar. They must be finished patching up the more minor wounds. I hurried to obey. “Then come over here and hold him down.”

“Isn’t he unconscious?” With the pot on the fire, I was free to hobble back to her, checking Hubric on my way past. His forehead was cool and his breathing easy.

“Don’t worry about Hubric. I checked him not long ago. The poultice has leeched out his infection and his wound looks much better. He’ll recover. Let’s make sure the Dominar does, too.” Her authoritative directions made me feel safe – like things couldn’t really go wrong when she was near.

“What do I do next?”

“We’re going to need privacy. Shut the door and lock it.”

I hurried to obey. After all, I didn’t want anyone else in here, either. I didn’t trust Iskaris, and I needed to keep these messages from him.

“We should take off his mask,” I said. “I know you said that we can’t, but how can we watch his face for signs of pain with it covered up?”

Ashana bit her lip, worrying it between her teeth before looking up and meeting my eyes. “What we do here can never be talked about after this – even between us. Promise me.”

“I promise.” I shivered under the importance of the vow.

“Remove it carefully. There’s a strap at the back to keep it on tight. You’ll have to loosen that.”

“What are you doing?”

She had a leather strap tied up on his arm near his shoulder. She worked to cinch it tighter, getting it so tight that I thought the leather might break. The Dominar’s arm was missing at the elbow, and while Ashana had reduced the bleeding from the grizzly stump, angry red lines were crawling up from it on his bicep.

“The red lines are the infection,” Ashana said as she worked. I gently lifted the Dominar’s head, feeling for the strap and loosening it as she spoke. “If it gets into the rest of him, he’ll die.”

Gently, I eased the crown and mask up a little and laid his head down on the pillow. “So you’re going to keep it out with the strap?”

“Not even close,” Ashana said, drawing a massive knife from its sheath on her belt. She placed the knife in a steaming basin of water beside her as I carefully removed the Dominar’s crown and mask. “When the tar is hot, I’ll cut off the infected part of the arm and coat the stump with tar to seal the wound. It’s his best chance to survive this.”

I gasped at her words and at the face revealed when the mask was removed. The man under the mask was barely older than I was, his dark skin and hair slick with sweat and pale with blood loss. My breath stuck in my throat. If anyone had asked, I would have said he was at least twice my age and wise beyond his years.

Ashana coughed and I realized I’d been staring for too long. “The Dominar isn’t the man. The Dominar is the crown and the weight of tradition and respect.”

I nodded, soberly, setting down the mask and crown on the bed beside him. Ashana handed me a cool cloth.

“Wipe his brow while I fetch the tar.”

With trembling hands, I obeyed, carefully wiping away the pain-sweat of the most powerful and significant man of the Dominion. What would we do if he died?

It would get very complicated very quickly. That must not be allowed to happen.

Hopefully, Ashana knew what she was doing. Had she done anything like it before?

You don’t become Top Rider by sitting around plucking daisy petals. Ashana Willowspring has earned her place, her honor, and the fine lines on her face the hard way. Don’t forget it.

If only she was a White.

And don’t ever let me hear that come from you!

As Prince of Dragons, wasn’t he supposed to care about all dragons and not just Purple ones? I was careful not to disturb the Dominar as I gently patted his face with the cloth, too.

I have a brother who is a White dragon. He can care about that color.

Maybe it was all a game, just like the thing about eating horses.

I keep telling you that’s real.

Or how he was happy to be with me when he should have been with Savette.

Was that a growl I’d heard through our link?

“The trick to it,” Ashana said as she sat down across from me on the narrow bed, the Dominar between us, “is to do it quickly. He’ll likely wake from the pain. He’ll jerk and thrash. That will be a problem. You’re going to sit on his chest and hold his shoulders down while I cut the arm and tend the wound.” My stomach lurched at her instructions. “Your role is important. Don’t let me down. If you lose your lunch, I’ll take that scarf right back and your Color with it.” Could she do that? “Ready?”

I swallowed the rising bile and moved to sit on the Dominar’s chest, my hands pinning his shoulders in place. I wasn’t at all ready.

“Wait,” I said. “What’s his name. I feel like I should know that.”

“It’s ‘Dominar’ since the day he put on that mask and it will be until the day he lies cold in the ground – which won’t be today if I have any say in the matter. Now, are you ready?”

He looked so young and vulnerable. I should be protecting him and not harming him.

This is protecting him. I’ll be here with you all the way.

“Ready,” I said hoarsely.

Chapter Five

The moment her knife bit into flesh his eyelids fluttered open and a moan escaped him.

“Shhh, easy now,” I crooned. “It will only be for a moment.”

He wailed, pushing up against my hands and I leaned all my weight on his shoulders, grimacing at the effort. He was strong – his muscles hard and thick. Would my full weight be enough to keep him down?

“Keep him still!” Ashana ordered.

Banging fists on the door distracted me for a moment.

“Still, Amel! Do you know what that means?”

I clenched my jaw and pressed my lips tight together, channeling every scrap of strength into holding him in place. His head thrashed from side to side, eyes shut, and features screwed into an expression of agony, but I had the feeling that he was trying his best to work with us. If he wasn’t, my weight wouldn’t be enough to keep him in place. Little whimpers escaped him, searing my heart with guilt.

He must live. He will die if Ashana doesn’t treat his wounds.

“What’s going on in there?” a muffled voice called through the door.

There was a thump and then Ashana murmured, “Almost done.”

The Dominar hissed and fell limp, his mind must have shut off to ward against a flood of pain. I swallowed, but my mouth was too dry to even whisper. When I turned to watch Ashana, she was deftly bandaging the stump of his arm.

“Get his mask back on,” she whispered.

I let go of his shoulders. Moving my weight off of him, and grabbed the heavy crown, carefully setting it over his face and on his head. It felt like a cruel thing to do.

Ashana sighed. “It’s not ideal, but his guardians will be ... testy ... if they find him without it and now is not the time.”

The banging continued on the door as Ashana removed the leather strap from the Dominar’s upper arm and I worked to cinch the strap of his mask-crown.

“He’s so young,” I said. “Too young for all of this.”

“Never speak a word of that. There are things surrounding this you know nothing of.”

“What’s his name?” I asked.

“He gave up the right to a name when he took the crown. I told you that.”

So cruel. How did a person live like that? As a symbol rather than a person?

The banging on the door grew louder.

“Open this door! Open it now!”

“Remember,” Ashana whispered. “You will never speak of what happened here. I have your oath on that.”

I nodded, an acidic taste filling my mouth. The secrets I had to keep were piling up so high that soon I’d be restricted to talking only about the weather.

“Go sit with your master. We’ll pretend that you have been tending to him. Hurry.”

I scrambled to obey as Ashana picked up her tools and basin. Something large was wrapped in a bloody cloth in the basin. I shuddered when I realized what it was. Ashana seemed unconcerned, striding to the door and unlocking it quickly so she could step aside as Iskaris and the other dragoons barrelled through the door.

“What happened here?” Iskaris demanded.

“I was merely tending the wounded,” Ashana said. “Look for yourself.”

Iskaris’ eyes scanned the room, a frown on his face. “Keep this door unlocked. From now on my dragoons will guard the Dominar’s bed.”

Ashana nodded. “Have you devised a plan for the defense of this place?”

“Nothing is getting through that door. Concern yourself with your own business, message bearer. You’re no warrior.”

The grim set of Ashana’s mouth told me that the insult had found its mark. “I’ll just clean up, then.”

Iskaris nodded. “When you’re done, I’ll speak with you in the Great Hall. We have things to discuss.”

He was going to ask her for our messages. And when he did, he’d see the ones that incriminated him. Should I destroy them before he saw them? Or hide them somewhere?

No and no. That’s not the Purple way. We own the truth as it comes to us.

Despite my worry, I couldn’t help but feel a stab of disappointment. Here I was, with the Dominar. I would have hoped that he would wake up and set things right, but the ruler of this whole land was hardly older than I was, unimpressive in every way.

It’s a mistake to judge by appearances or to judge a man by how he looks while he recovers from injury.

I mopped Hubric’s forehead with a damp cloth as my thoughts rose into a flurry. I was just as disappointed with the Dominar’s dragoons as I was with him. They were the elite force of the nation, and what? They were incompetent, broken down and small, cowering here in a cave.

We’re cowering in a cave, too. And I’m a prince and Savette is the Chosen One. Everyone is human – even dragons. No one really rises above that no matter what kind of prestigious position they find themselves in.

Why was our Dominar out wandering in the woods with a tiny handful of guards?

After Vanika, they moved to a mountain fortress, but when Baojang swept down from the north, the fortress was overrun. They fled through a secret passage to the woods and flew - aboard the Silver dragons - south towards the capitol, but the Dusk Covenant was a step ahead of them. Ifrits came from all around and attacked the Dominar. He and his dragoons have been fighting and retreating for seven days, slowly moving mile by mile as they fight. The dragons were no match for so many Ifrits – but you know that. You’ve seen it in person. These men here are all that is left of more than a hundred dragoons, guards, and warriors. They are battered, broken men. Iskaris alone has any fight left, and we both know that he is a traitor.

I felt a chill creep into me. How did he know all of this?

I’ve been talking to Ayancig and Inrujee the Silver dragons. They watched their brothers perish and they are deeply wounded and battered. Neither can fly. They bear the honor of Haz’drazen, serving the Dominar as we have promised since the first pact.

If they had been overwhelmed, what chance did we stand?

I have an idea about that.

I almost jumped when Hubric’s eyes sprang open. My hand froze where it held a cloth to his forehead.

“I’m back.” His voice was hoarse, but his wink was firm and sure.

Chapter Six

“Hubric!” I couldn’t contain my delight. Finally, some ray of hope in these dark caverns!

“I need to see Kyrowat,” he whispered.

“Kyrowat is resting just like you should be. Here, drink something,” I said, offering him a cup of water from the bedside.

He held out his hand and I helped to ease him up to a sitting position, propping him up against the headboard and offering him water.

“He survived.” His tone held gratitude and relief.

“For now. We’re in a bit of a situation here.” I glanced around. Two dragoons sat silently on either side of the Dominar’s bed. I couldn’t tell him everything with them there.

Sending help.

Gently, but succinctly, I sketched out what had happened before we found him and then what happened after, glossing over the Dominar and Iskaris and leaving the messages out completely. Hopefully, the grave look on my face and the frequent glances at the dragoons were enough of a signal to him to show him that we couldn’t speak freely.

He nodded, leaning his head back against the headboard like he was too weak to sit up straight. Just when I was considering helping him lie down again, Savette entered with a steaming tray. She spoke with the dragoons, offering them broth and flatbread and then brought a cup of broth to Hubric, offering it to him gravely.

“I hear that congratulations are in order,” he said weakly.

“Thank you,” even strained, her smile was lovely. I missed seeing her eyes, though.

“I also heard your blushing groom fled the moment he could.”

“And I hear that you want to see your dragon,” she replied when he’d finished sipping his cup of broth. “I was sent to help with that.”

Hubric eyed her skeptically.

“Well, if you don’t want Amel and me to help you, then you’ll have to wait a long time. Those legs aren’t going to hold you up until you have time to rest.”

“Fine, fine,” he grumbled, but he seemed too tired to be actually upset, allowing us to help him pull his dragon rider leathers back on and tie his scarves.

We were tying the last two when Ashana Willowspring walked in. She checked on the Dominar despite the wary glances and sudden straightening of his guards and then rounded on us.

“I see you’re in your element, Hubric Duneshifter. It’s not every day that you have two servants to help you dress.” She made a conspicuous sign with her fingers that meant nothing to me. Was this yet another secret language. How many of these did Hubric know?

“Haven’t you heard? I’ve come up in the world, Top. I have my own apprentice, an ally or two and I’ve really mastered the cards. Perhaps, you’ll play a round.” His own fingers tapped a rhythm on the bed that didn’t fit with his words. Secrets within secrets – that was Hubric’s way, and apparently Ashana was the same way.

“You know I’m always up for a game,” Ashana said, pulling a stool and small table over and producing a deck. She was planning to play right now? She cocked her head slightly to the side. “Unless you were in a hurry to get up?”

“No, I’ll stay for a round or two. Gather my strength.” He sounded so casual about it when he’d been determined to leave only moments before.

“In that case, I have work to do,” Savette said, gathering up the wooden bowls and cups.

“I could use some tea, my dear. Perhaps some with feverfew or comfrey?”

“I’ll see what we have.”

“Don’t go running off now,” he added in a warning voice. “I don’t see any dark-haired princes to save you.”

Oh! There was still some bitterness there! Savette set her mouth in a hard line and left, her white gown flowing in her haste.

“Well, your injuries haven’t hurt your tongue, have they?” Ashana said, dealing the cards. “Have you taught your apprentice how to win at cards?”

The wary look she shot me made her question clear. Would I know what she was communicating through the card game?

“Hardly,” Hubric said dryly. “You can’t make a winner in only a few games.”

Ashana’s shoulders relaxed and she allowed herself a tense smile as she said, “You play first.”

Hubric laid down two mountains and Ashana laid down three demons so quickly it was as if she knew what he would play.

He whistled. “I’ve been sick. You can’t go easy on me?”

“I didn’t take you for a weakling, Hubric.” Her tone was light, but her eyes were grim as she laid down her next hand. Four warriors.

Hubric responded with seven dragons. How did he have so many in his hand?

“I’d call that a draw,” she said running her hand over all the played cards and gathering them up. He went pale at her words but cleared his throat and took the deck to deal again. I thought that maybe I understood at least a little of that interaction. She was telling him that we were stuck here with the Ifrits outside and only four dragon riders and he was suggesting that the dragons might tip the balance in our favor. Then why had she cleared them all away? Did that mean what I thought it did? Was she saying we had no hope?

“Maybe we should raise the stakes,” he said.

“I can’t go any higher. Deal.”

Hubric dealt the cards and Ashana placed the Dominar down.

“Risky move,” Hubric said.

His tower card was laid beside her’s and then she laid a hurricane. His counter was a gate. Was he suggesting that we find another way out? That was the obvious solution to the situation, wasn’t it? But where would we find one? Her two knaves left him chewing his lip.

“Three might do better for you,” he suggested.

“I doubt it.”

“Can I offer a suggestion?” I asked him. His expression was confused as I reached into his fan of cards and pulled out a shadowy figure – the assassin – and laid it on the table.

“You shouldn’t play a card like that without a good reason,” Ashana said coolly. “Take it back.”

I cleared my throat, worried. Did they understand what I was saying?

“I wish I could, but it was already played,” I said, pushing it to the same place on the table that her knaves sat.

Wordlessly, she placed her white queen beside the Dominar card. The lines in her face looked deeper as casually, she dealt out five dragons surrounding them and with a questioning look at me, placed two more beside the assassin. I nodded, my breath in my throat and she laughed, suddenly.

“Well, I don’t think I’ve ever lost so badly, Hubric. But I’d rather lose with you, I suppose.” My mind corrected it to ‘lose to you’ but that wasn’t what she meant, was it? She meant exactly what she said. We were playing a losing hand with a traitor in our midst, the Dominar at risk, and none of us knew how to get out of it alive.

Chapter Seven

“Cards?” Iskaris asked, entering the room as Hubric hurriedly gathered up the cards and tucked them into a neat pile. “At a time like this? I expected more from you, Dragon Riders. My men tell me that we are running out of time. I’ve instructed them to pack basic supplies into whatever we can find to carry them and to construct a litter for the Dominar. I don’t have time for foolishness anymore. What messages were you carrying?”

We are running out of time. Savette is with me. She says the Ifrits are sapping the strength out of the door. It’s three feet thick – but that isn’t thick enough. It will crumble before the day is done.

His eyes were on Hubric, though I felt my own face heating.

“Only one,” Hubric said. “From Cynos Vineplanter of the Red to the Dominar – a verbal message – five ships of Baojang and the far Rock Eaters have invaded our shores where the Feet of the River meets the Eastern Sea.”

“Grim news.” Iskaris frowned and turned to Ashana. “And you?”

“I don’t answer to you, Iskaris,” she said easily. “And my messages have nothing to do with you. As such, you don’t need to know their contents.”

My heart leapt. Perhaps if she could keep their contents a secret she could keep mine safe, too.

“I’ll read them and determine that,” he said.

Forget messages and concentrate on the door. It’s coming down. What other alternative is there?

If the door, thick as it was, was not sufficient to keep the Ifrits out, then what could we do? We were no match for them. But there had been something in the message from Comard Eaglespring about remembering the words of Ibrenicus. Could that help us?

Savette has been feeling through this shelter and she thinks she knows a way. I told her how this mountain was made when the dragons built our underground warrens. One of those warrens is not far from here. She thinks she can punch through the rock and open a path.

Knowing what else Savette could do, I wasn’t surprised.

If she isn’t too weakened from the fight outside.

Ashana and Iskaris’ voices were rising as they argued.

“–haven’t even read them myself,” Ashana was saying.

“All the more reason to check them and if there is no more information in there than we already have it won’t have hurt anything.”

“What information do you expect? A magical cord you pull and then a door spins into existence?”

I wouldn’t want her mocking tone aimed at me. I should interrupt and tell them about the warrens.

No!

Hubric laid a hand on my arm with a small shake of his head at the same moment. Was he speaking to Raolcan, too?

He speaks to Kyrowat. Together we are finding a solution. We will drill a hole through the rock to the warrens, using Savette’s power and our flames. Then, we take the refugees out that way and escape through the warrens with them to safety.

And how far away was safety?

Maybe close, maybe far. I will know more when we enter the warrens. The Silvers can carry the Dominar, and we will help guide the people through. It’s better than the alternative.

It would also give the Ifrits access to the dragon warrens.

We’ll have to take that chance.

And why shouldn’t we tell Iskaris ourselves?

If he really is a traitor, he’ll try to sabotage us. Wait until the way is made and the plan hatched before you tell him.

“I’m not such a fool as you think,” Iskaris said to Ashana, putting his face in his hands for a moment. I shuffled backward. His men stood behind him, looking in that moment, as raw and desperate as he was. “I know what our options are right now. I’m just looking for something – anything – else. The Dominar’s safety is my only concern.”

It sounded like the truth. He really did care about the Dominar. And yet – he was Dusk Covenant, wasn’t he?

“Anything other than what?” Ashana asked.

“As far as I can tell, we can either stay where we are and be slaughtered when the door breaks down in a few hours, or surrender now and beg for mercy,” Iskaris said, grimly.

In the absolute silence that followed the whisper from the Dominar’s bed was as plain as a bell.

“Mercy.”

Chapter Eight

“Dominar?” Iskaris asked, rushing to his side, but the Dominar’s head lolled to the side again, clearly no longer with us. “My liege?”

Ashana cleared her throat. “He’ll be in and out as he recovers. He lost a lot of blood.”

“I’ve seen the wounded before,” Iskaris snapped. “I don’t need a lecture.”

He straightened, and I felt an urge to step backward from the intensity of his movement, but Ashana didn’t flinch at all, she leaned forward as if she wanted to fight. Hubric yawned beside me.

“The Dominar – glory to his reign – has spoken,” Iskaris said clearly and with a determined look on his face. “We will rest for one hour and hope he regains consciousness in that time. Whether he does or not, we will surrender and ask for mercy.”

“Are you sure he was talking about that? Maybe he just wanted relief from the pain. The man does appear to be missing an arm,” Hubric said casually.

“Enough.” Iskaris glared at Ashana. “Keep your riders under control and make sure your dragons are ready to leave in one hour.”

Ashana stared at him for a long moment, as if to prove that she couldn’t be ordered around.

“Let’s go check the dragons, Riders,” she said eventually.

I helped Hubric stand and we hobbled along behind her as she left the room. I stole a glance back at the Dominar as we left the room. Would he be safe here without us? Even though these were his guards, they didn’t seem to care about him as much as he deserved. And I didn’t believe that he wanted us to surrender.

Neither do I. Think about what he said.

He had said a single word, “mercy.” Yes, it could have been in response to what Iskaris was saying, but what if it meant something else? I couldn’t think of what else it could mean, though.

When you wanted to warn Hubric and Ashana about Iskaris, you relied on the card game.

But mercy had nothing to do with cards.

But could it be a reference to something bigger that others would understand?

Why was that note from Comard Eaglespring bothering me? It was like my mind was trying to make a connection between the two and it just couldn’t tie them together.

Hubric was oddly silent, as if his thoughts were preoccupied as we made our way to the dragons. As soon as I said that he looked at me and quirked a smile.

“Is that Ashana’s purple scarf I see around your neck, Sworn? Have you been given your colors while I was recovering?”

I felt my cheeks heat with pride. He’d noticed.

“Keep up this pace and Ashana will have to worry about you taking her job. It’s deserved but don’t let it swell your head. You’re still woefully under-educated for the role.” Was that tenderness I heard under his harsh tone?

“I‘m glad you survived,” I said, affectionately. I was worried he wouldn’t.

“I could say the same to you. I thought I’d lost you, Sworn. It made me feel my age – and no one wants that.”

I stifled a laugh. We were almost through the Great Hall despite our slow pace. I didn’t want to urge him to go faster when he was still so vulnerable.

“I have a foggy memory of you reading the Ibrenicus Prophecies to me,” he said.

“You heard me?” And here I thought he was unconscious the entire time!

“Did you read them all?”

I laughed. “At least three times. I thought it was keeping you calm.”

“The Prophecies have a purifying effect. And they stick in the mind. Tell me, do you remember one that starts, ‘Behold, behold in the dark of the night?’”

The words sounded familiar. I wracked my brain to think of them as we entered the anteroom where the dragons shuffled nervously from foot to foot while shudders filled the room from the Ifrit’s attack on the door. There were already too many dragons in the anteroom – packed in too tightly and smelling of something...

Fear. We smell of fear.

Behold, behold, in the dark of the night... something about a light emerging from the ground, right? Something about the dawn of hope and the mercy of the past. Was that right? Maybe this was what Comard Eaglespring meant about remembering the prophecies. Maybe they contained some hint to getting out of places like this.

The Silver dragon’s scales were so sleek that it was hard to tell where one scale ended and the next one began. I paused for a moment when they came into view to look them over. Even Eeamdor’s sleek red scales looked rough in comparison.

They’re royal dragons – beautiful and poisonous.

Not as royal as Raolcan. And he didn’t need poison – other than some of his words, of course.

I resemble that implication.

Hubric practically dragged me to Kyrowat’s side in his excitement, finally releasing me when he was close enough to slump against his dragon. Kyrowat had better not flame me! It wasn’t my fault I was standing so close. I quickly hobbled over to Raolcan. He dipped his head low, looking me eye-to-eye as he recited the prophecy I couldn’t remember.

Behold, behold in the dark of the night,

Surrounded and harried to flight,

Up from the ground through the earth’s veins

Light of light and he who reigns

Dawn of hope through mercy of the past

Arriving to shine over us at last.

Mercy of the past. Had he been referring to that? Perhaps that was too much of a stretch. After all, mercy was probably mentioned a lot in the Ibrenicus Prophecies.

So what? Do you think that’s referring to another time that Savette and the Dominar will be buried under ground together?

What?

Well, who else would you call ‘light of light’ except Savette? And despite the fact that you took off his crown for a while, I think it’s still safe to call the Dominar ‘he who reigns,’ don’t you? I think it’s time to find that mercy of the past.

I swallowed and looked to Hubric. His hoary eyebrows highlighted a stormy gaze.

“Do you believe, Sworn?”

Clearly, he and Kyrowat were having a similar conversation, and knowing Hubric, he was probably dead certain that the prophecy applied to this. Crazy as it was, I thought I might agree. After all, they had applied to Savette so far, and losing her to Ifrits now would be a terrible thing.

“I’m worried about your back. You aren’t fit to be moving around like this.” I was avoiding the question. I did think it was possible. I just wasn’t sure where we’d find this “mercy of the past.” Other than building this place, had anything ever happened around here? Even Savette hadn’t found it and she’d been looking for a way out while I was occupied with the injured.

That hammering in the background was getting to me. It was like I could feel icy cold sapping my strength and making my belly roil.

“I’m fit enough,” Hubric growled. “Now that I’m out of bed I don’t want to hear anything more of it. I know you and Raolcan are talking. Do you have any ideas?”

I wonder if this place was built because it was close to the warrens. Perhaps it was a stop along the way. If that was the case, maybe the warrens were cut off by a shift in the earth. Is there somewhere in this hole where the rock face looks crumbled rather than smooth? Like it wasn’t carved out so much as caved in?

“There’s a place just like that in the storeroom,” I said aloud with a sudden memory of staring at the wall while Savette helped me look for tar and a pot. There had been shelves set up in front of it, but it was definitely there. And hadn’t she felt something pulling at her when we were there?

Chapter Nine

“I’ll stay with the dragons, and tell Ashana,” Hubric said. His eyes told me he had been following our discussion through Kyrowat. He turned, looking for her. She was somewhere near her own dragon. Whispering to Aliss who was tending wounds on her Daieseo. “You go and check that storeroom.”

“Hubric?” I whispered, waiting for him to look back at me before continuing. “We recovered your messages.” I pulled them one by one from my belt and handed them to him. “You should read them while you wait.”

Anger filled his face. “You read these, Sworn?”

I bit my lip. “Just read them.”

“No.”

“What they say is important to us.”

He shook his head. “It troubles me that you broke our honor in this.”

“I wouldn’t know Iskaris is a traitor if I hadn’t read them,” I hissed.

His brow furrowed but he kept silent.

“Just think about it,” I said as I left. Sure, he might be mad, but it was a good thing I read those notes. Maybe they would see that our policy of keeping them secret wasn’t helping anything.

I think you underestimate how irritated he is with you right now. If we didn’t have Ifrits on our back and so many people relying on us, I think you might be sorry you ever admitted that. Good timing, by the way. I need to try that. Admitting to something bad when something evil is after you is a great way to avoid being punished for what you did.

Was he just trying to rub my nose in it?

I hurried into the Great Hall, my crutch skidding on the hard floor in my hurry. Iskaris and his dragoons were eating at one of the tables and a few of the refugees were at the other end of the hall, quietly eating soup. I swallowed down a stab of fear. It wouldn’t just be us who suffered if we didn’t find a way out. Iskaris didn’t mind sacrificing those innocent children to the Ifrits. That couldn’t happen.

“I require those messages now that you aren’t busy, Sworn,” Iskaris said as I passed his table.

“I don’t have any,” I said, hurrying by. His eyes followed me. What if he asked me to stop and prove it? I didn’t have them anymore, but I also didn’t have time to waste. How much of his hour was left?

Fortunately, he didn’t ask anything more and as I entered the storeroom, I breathed a sigh of relief, shutting the door behind me.

“Amel?” Savette was there already! “Lock the door behind you.”

I carefully barred the door and hobbled to the back of the room. Savette was in the back of the room, pacing back and forth.

“I can feel something close – I’m just not exactly sure where. It’s in this room, though. I have a feeling that there’s a way out through here.”

I hobbled to the back wall, gripping the tool-filled shelf. “Help me move this.”

She strode over and helped me move the shelf. “You know your suspicions about Rakturan aren’t true, right? I have never felt evil from him and his eyes are filled with white light.”

“You’re still thinking about that?”

It wasn’t obvious that the wall had ever been a door. It just looked like a rough wall with seams of lighter rock running through the black.

“What else would I be thinking about? It bothers me that you trust Hubric unconditionally and now Ashana, but you doubted Rakturan. How are we supposed to be friends if you doubt my husband?”

“You know that there are Ifrits about to burst in here and slaughter us, right? And it’s up to me and you to get out of here?”

“You think the way is through here?” she put her hands on the rock but turned to me. “It’s just that it’s very hard to concentrate knowing that I don’t have your full support.”

My mouth dropped open. She cared that much about my opinion?

“It was one thing when you acted like I was a child who couldn’t be let out of your sight, but now this idea that you know everything, and I have to listen to your judgment on this is just too much. I just can’t concentrate.”

“Ummm ... Savette. You could have said something, you know.”

“I’m saying something now.”

“I hate to interrupt you when you’re dressing me down, but do you think you can feel a way through that wall?”

She paused and frowned. “Do you know how hard it is to connect to the truth when you’re full of doubts?”

“No.” What was she talking about? Wait. Her magic ran on truth, right? So, was she saying that she couldn’t operate it to its full potential unless she was being completely honest and so she was revealing her inner frustration to me?

That is exactly what she’s saying. Hear her out. Besides, she has a point. Rak is not our enemy.

Says the guy who once carried him in his mouth.

I would have tasted it if he was evil. Evil tastes like lima beans.

Now, that had to be a joke.

“Well, it’s difficult,” Savette said, leaning her forehead against the wall.

I drew in a deep breath. I should have remembered this. I shouldn’t have let it fester in her.

“Savette,” I said. “I want you to know that if you are saying that Rakturan is beyond suspicion, then I believe you and I will trust your judgment. You have my full confidence.”

“I want you to swear.”

“Swear what?” I was practically bouncing in place. I needed her to concentrate and find a way out of here!

“Swear that no matter what happens you’ll trust Rak and give him the benefit of the doubt.”

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. I didn’t like making this promise. I was naturally wary of people.  But I had much bigger things to worry about.

“I promise.”

She smiled. Light filled the room and with it was the sound of rock scraping against rock as the glow around her hands became brighter and brighter and brighter until all I could see was white. I fell to my knees, my hands covering my ears against the screeching scrape.

As soon as the sound was gone, I opened my eyes. A tunnel – barely wider than a dragon – stretched out in front of us into the deep black of underground night.

“What did you do?” A tingle of awe ran across my arms as I spoke. Had she drilled a tunnel through the rock?

“It used to be here, but the ground shifted down at this fault. The entrance was below the floor, so it didn’t line up anymore. I just reminded it that this was its place and that it belonged here. Just like Rak and I belong together.”

Was it really that simple?

To her it is. Isn’t that magical?

Chapter Ten

Shouts and curses from outside the door were all it took for me to shake out of my stunned haze and pull myself back up on my feet. My crutch wobbled a little as I rushed toward the door. There were going to be some very concerned people on the other side of that door.

Yes, but not concerned about you.

What?

We’ve been busy, too.

I unbarred the door to chaos. The refugees huddled in the door to their sleeping quarters. In the center of the Great Hall, Iskaris and Ashana were nose to nose, faces red and spewing words at such an alarming volume and pace that they weren’t worth trying to understand. Besides, the cause was obvious.

Across the room, the door to the anteroom had been transformed into something large enough to allow a dragon to enter. The raw edges of the newly-expanded doorway glowed red hot and the rock that was once carved in straight lines was now a rippled circle.

Dragons could melt stone?

When you convince seven of them at once to really concentrate...

I scanned the room for injuries. Surely someone was hurt from that.

Have a little faith in us. Ashana went into the room first and had everyone back up.

No time to discuss it. There was room for dragons to come through. There was an entrance to the warrens. We needed to start moving before the Ifrits burst through the door and got in here with us.

I thought I heard something crumbling behind us a moment ago.

Then we needed to move quickly. Across the room, Hubric hurried through the very center of the cooling door, his leathers and hair smoking slightly as he made his way through. Skies and Stars! That door would light anyone but a dragon on fire! Aliss was next, with Daieseo. They hurried towards the huge storeroom door. A door, I realized in retrospect, that was plenty large enough for a dragon. Perhaps this room had been designed to be entered from a different direction.

Okay, this is the plan. No objecting, anyone. Raolcan must have been talking to more people than just me. While Ashana keeps Iskaris busy we need to move. Aliss and Daieso have volunteered to lead the way with Rasipaer. Ashana will catch up when she is ready. They will navigate the caverns as best as they can. The refugees must follow while the dragoons are still distracted. Savette, speak with them now. They have come to trust you. Impress upon them the need to hurry.

Savette rushed off toward the refugees, leaving me standing in the doorway. I hustled to the side as Aliss and Daieseo barreled through. Aliss signed a greeting as the two headed into the storeroom. Had the dragoons missed what happened within?

Iskaris isn’t budging on a surrender and that can’t be allowed. We will all die if we surrender. No, no objections.

Clearly, someone wasn’t seeing eye to eye with him on this.

I’m pulling rank for once and you’ll follow my plan. Because I’m a Dragon Prince, that’s why!

Someone had dared to challenge him! I wouldn’t do that. It made me feel nervous just to think about it.

Back to the plan – Savette and Eeamdor are next after the refugees. Amel, go and prepare the Dominar to be transported. He will ride on my back. Because you’re lightheaded and down a wing, Ayancig! I saw how you stumbled when we flamed. If you Silvers don’t stop fighting me on this, I’ll leave you here. Understood?

Ah. It was the Silvers who were objecting. I hurried across the hall, stunned that Iskaris had not yet noticed the stream of refugees running to the storeroom behind his back. He was shouting at Ashana about the hole in the wall, his face red and arms flailing while the guards on either side of him had their weapons drawn. They looked back and forth between their angry leader and the fleeing refugees, clearly uncertain whether to support his rage or find out what was going on.

I darted past them, ducking into the Dominar’s room. The two dragoons stationed there leapt to their feet.

Kyrowat and Hubric will go next, then the Silvers and Dragoons. Because you are warriors, Ayancig, and you will want to bring up the rear. Even I know that much. Oh, yes, be my guest, complain away. When your master awakens he can reverse all of this, but while he is vulnerable, I’m taking the reins and yes that pun is intended!

Wow, I’d never heard Raolcan sound so intense! I rushed toward the Dominar but had to throw up my unoccupied hand and stop in my tracks when they crossed their blades in front of me.

“No one approaches the Dominar without our permission.”

Chapter Eleven

“We need to go,” I said. “The Ifrits are almost through the door. Whether we plan to run or surrender, the Dominar needs to be moved to a pallet for transport.”

They looked at each other before nodding and stepping aside. They both looked worn and haunted, like there wasn’t much life left in them.

“Lieutenant Iskaris has decided to surrender, then?” one of them asked.

I shrugged. “Can we use the pallet you brought him on?’

“No, but we can use the tick mattress on the bed if we use the rope lattice from the old pallet.”

I followed him to the bloody, discarded pallet. He was right. The ropes were the only salvageable part of it. Together, we detached them from the rest of the makeshift rig, took Hubric’s mattress off the narrow bed and laid it in the net of ropes and tied it in, rushing to cover it with the sheets and blankets of the bed. Would we have enough supplies with us, like bandages and water?

Savette packed up a few things for our saddlebags. Hurry.

“Have you seen Ifrits before?” the Dragoon asked me as we worked. “You looked like you knew how to fight them.”

“We’ve been encountering them for the past few weeks,” I said. No need to get into details while we hurried. “There. I think that will hold him. Can you two carry him from the bed to the pallet?”

They nodded and lifted him carefully from one to the other, his mask never shifting. We tied one of the ropes around him to keep him from falling and tried to make it as comfortable as possible.

“Have you seen anyone surrender to them before?” the Dragoon asked.

I paused. “No one really has time for that. They usually die before they have a chance.”

He nodded grimly, as if he had expected that. Why was he willing to surrender, knowing what it meant?

No more time for chitter chatter. I’m outside the door. Bring the Dominar.

“Can you lift the pallet?” I asked the Dragoons. “Follow me.”

We rushed out of the room to the chaos beyond.

“What are you doing? Return your liege to his room!” Iskaris yelled as we emerged, but Raolcan was already barrelling past him, skidding to a stop in front of us.

“Load the pallet on Raolcan,” I said, ignoring Iskaris. “Try to balance it on the saddle between his shoulders.”

“Not hanging from the side?” the Dragoon who had asked about the Ifrits asked. He looked nervously at Iskaris, but his mouth was set in a hard line and I knew he was with me on this. This was the only hope of saving the life of our ruler.

Jakvar. That’s the Dragoon’s name.

“It’s too narrow where we are going. He needs to be up top, so we can squeeze through tight spaces.”

“I said stop!” Iskaris said, shoving Ashana out of his path. She recovered her balance, drawing a long knife from her belt and lowering into a fighting stance.

“Surrender is death, Lieutenant,” she called back. “We have only one option. We flee and possibly save the life of our Domianar, or we all die.”

“Listen,” Iskaris said. “I’m the Dominar’s personal guard. Would I really put his life in danger if there were another alternative?”

“You would if you were Dusk Covenant,” I said, quietly.

“What’s the Dusk Covenant? I’m a dragoon lieutenant and nothing more.”

“Then come with us,” Ashana said. “Save your master. We’ve found a way out. Probably.”

Iskaris’ face twisted with indecision, but as he paused to consider, the Dragoons with me hurried to load the Dominar on Raolcan’s back. Without waiting for a reply from Iskaris, Raolcan rushed toward the storeroom and I hobbled after him, the two Dragoons with me.

The Silver dragons waited for us to pass before following Raolcan into the storeroom. The moment we went through the door, I heard a cracking sound.

The door gives way. Run.

I wasn’t much of a runner. Not with a bad leg and a crutch.

Grab the side of my saddle. Use me instead of a crutch.

I grabbed the side of his saddle with my left arm, letting the crutch dangle from its strap, and took long one-legged leaps, letting Raolcan bear most of my weight.

Just like that!

Ashana shouted from behind me, but it was no longer shouts of anger, but shouts of fear and urgency. Iskaris called out, too. Was he fleeing with us, then?

As the dark of the warrens swallowed us up, I realized belatedly that I had not thought to bring a light.

There is a lantern and flint in my saddlebags. When we stop, we can light it – if we have time.

A dim, shadowy light flickered occasionally in front of us.

The others have lanterns. Theirs are lit, but the passages twist and turn.

As we turned our first corner, a powerful boom shook the ground. I knew without having to be told that the door had been breached. There would be Ifrits behind us now, and dark earthy places were their natural territory.

Chapter Twelve

I wasn’t sure how long we’d been running when Ashana passed us.

“The Dragoons came, too,” she said between gasps of breath. “They’re behind you as a vanguard. I’m going to catch up with Kyrowat. He says the path branches up ahead and decisions will need to be made. He’ll keep Raolcan in the loop. You’ll catch up to Hubric soon. He’s just ahead of you.”

The passage was too tight for a dragon to pass another dragon. Ashana barely squeezed by me. Whatever position we were in was where we were stuck. Behind us, there were only the Dragoons and Iskaris and the two Silvers to defend against the Ifrits. I swallowed, my lips thinning as I thought about how the man I trusted least was our rear-guard. None of the Dragoons had much drive left except for Iskaris – the possible traitor. Despite his denials, I didn’t believe that he wasn’t Dusk Covenant.

“Maybe the Ifrits are too large to fit in the passage,” I said, gasping for breath. Raolcan’s support was a huge help, but it was still effort to half-hobble, half-be carried.

The passage is still taller than it is wide. You can hop up on my back when we stop. It might be a better place to keep an eye on the Dominar from, anyway.

“Don’t place any bets on that,” Ashana said. “They didn’t look very solid when we fought them. I think they could twist those smoke and dust forms into something slender enough to squeeze through these warrens.”

I felt a spike of fear thinking of Ifrits pouring into the warrens like oil through a funnel, with nothing but a handful of half-hearted Dragoons and two broken Silver dragons between them and me.

“Hold steady,” Ashana said.

Raolcan’s silence in my mind only deepened my fears. After all, if he wasn’t rushing to counter them and comfort me, then they must be accurate.

Hold steady, like Ashana said. Fear is the friend that makes us quick to respond and the enemy that makes our minds grow sluggish. Take the gift and reject the curse it carries.

Good advice. In the cloying darkness, my hearing felt like it was expanding outwards to fill the surrounding world. I could hear Raolcan’s every breath and even the steady metronome of his heart. Behind us, scuffling, curses in the dark and the clink of metal against rock. What if they ran faster than us? What if one of them plunged his sword into my back, not knowing I was there?

From ahead of us, all I heard was the occasional echo of a voice. I wished I could see. I wished Raolcan would flame – just enough to see what was in front of us so we didn’t fall into a hole.

Actually, I can see just fine in the dark. And if I flame right now, I’ll torch Ashana and I don’t think she’d like that.

Could he see how far behind us the Silvers and Dragoons were?

I don’t have eyes in the back of my head, Amel.

Then they could be creeping up in this mineral-smelling cave, and they would never know I was here...

Except that I can read the Silvers’ minds and I know they are still a little behind us. But the Ifrits are behind them. They follow us into the deep dark.

Did he have any idea how creepy that sounded? The idea of anyone following me in the dark was terrifying. When I added in the idea of horrific earth demons, I felt like I might need a rest stop soon.

Hold your nerve. We come to the first gateway.

Gateway?

These warrens were made by the Elders before Haz’draen birthed us, before she was an egg herself.

That must be old.

Older than you can imagine. They are so old that they are dangerous. We dragons maintain the ones we use often, but this is far from where we go. No one has been here for hundreds of years, but I sense the magic here.

Magic? He could somehow sense magic?

Dragon magic.

I didn’t know dragons had magic.

Not many of us do, but in the old days there were many magical dragons and they were the ones who made these warrens in defiance of the laws of the world – held in stasis by their great power – a place to flee to when our enemies gather. A way to reach one another when the skies are inhospitable.

It seemed strange that dragons would build cave systems when they were creatures of the air.

Stranger than how we moved rivers and mountains?

Their world was one I’d never suspected.

Humans always assume they are the pinnacle and just live like it’s true. It isn’t true. You are only a small part of the world, though you matter a great deal to me.

Ahead, I thought I saw a faint glow of light. The glow grew stronger.

Hold tight to me now.

I gripped his saddle tightly. Ahead, the light called to me. I leaned out from Raolcan to try to see it.

No, tuck in tight. I don’t want you falling off the ledge.

Ledge? I looked down. We were emerging from a tight tunnel to a wide open space. As the cave opened up, the floor became a stone bridge with nothing but a black drop in either side of the narrow rock. Thank goodness for the glow! Someone must have lit a torch ahead. I strained my eyes to see, hugging close to Raolcan and when we finally took a small turn in the path, I gasped.

In the center of the massive cavern was an island-like hub and out from it, a variety of bridge-paths branched out. The center of the hub was a massive statue of a rearing dragon. It was not the lanterns in the hands of the refugees or Savette’s eyes that lit my path now, but the faint glow that surrounded the dragon statue. At his feet, purple swirls and dips of a regular size and similar shapes glowed like glyphs.

They are glyphs carved by a dragon claw. They channel the power of the gateway, but see how faint the glow is? The power here is faint. There will not be enough to transport all of us.

He wasn’t making any sense. Transport? Wasn’t it just a sign that told us which path led where?

It does that, too. Raolcan said as we stepped onto the center island. I felt a tension within me ease as soon as my feet hit the more solid rock of that center hub. In the ghost-like light, I searched for familiar faces, sighing with relief at each one. Savette and Eeamdor. Hubric and Kyrowat. Ashana and Rasipaer. The huddled refugees, silent in either awe or terror.

Under the feet of the huddled refugees a glowing sigil in a ring faintly pulsed. The pattern of it moved as if it were alive. It was almost as if it were welcoming them, since they stood within the ring, but there wasn’t room for a single body more in that swirling, moving sigil.

See the sigil they stand on? It can take them far from here with a single word from me. I think there remains enough power to do that. Usually, you can do it often with only a small break between transports. Right now, with the glow so dull and the power so drained? We will be lucky if it moves them once. It will certainly not have the power to move all of us.

Were there more of these?

Undoubtedly, but where they are along the path and whether they, too, are stripped of power ... that is the question.

So, we were faced with a decision. Some of us could flee the terror of this living grave – but not all of us. I already could guess who Iskaris would nominate to go once he got here.

Chapter Thirteen

Fortunately, Ashana was the one barking orders when we arrived. “Yes, all of you. Every villager, every child, every bag you carry has to fit in that circle and room for a dragon and rider, too.”

As she spoke, children wailed as their mothers hushed them and the quavering voices of the elderly asked for clarification. My belly flipped with queasiness. What if those were my children sobbing? My grandparents confused in the dark? If there was a way – any way – to get them out of here we had to take it.

“Unload the Dominar and bring his pallet here,” Ashana said.

I scrambled to obey, Hubric immediately at my side. “The Ifrits aren’t far behind. We must hurry.”

Would we wait for the Dominar to be transferred to the circle if they came around the corner? Wouldn’t it be better to get the innocents as far away from the clutches of the earth demons as possible? My heart was racing, my brain swirling round and round so quickly that I couldn’t catch a thought.

Calmly now. Don’t fear. I won’t let those little ones perish no matter what comes next. You have my word.

If I had Raolcan’s word, then it was as good as done. I felt my breathing slow as I climbed up on his back and began to unfasten the pallet. Behind us, Iskaris and his men arrived, the Silver dragons with them.

“What manner of place is this?” Iskaris breathed.

“A gateway.” Hubric’s words were clipped but steady. “We can get some of these people out of here.”

“To where?” Beside Iskaris, his Dragoons formed a line, blades out toward the darkness, their dragons anchoring the ends of the line, despite their injuries.

“The Dragon Lands. Don’t ask me where it leads to there. Kyrowat says that the gateways can be manipulated, but this one is low on magic and he says that if we try to change the destination it might sap the last of the strength of it. We’ll just have to risk sending them to Haz’drazen wherever they end up in her lands. Ashana is trying to fit a dragon in with them to help with communication. Here, help us with the Dominar.”

I had the last strap unfastened and was already shuffling the pallet toward Hubric’s reaching arms. Behind him, Aliss and Ashana had Daieseo in the ring, lying down. People sat on his back, tail, and neck, crowding in so that they could all fit in the circle with the big Purple dragon. Aliss was wedged against his face, hers bent in close, clearly trying her best to keep him from complete claustrophobia. We’d better hurry before he panicked and flamed someone.

A real possibility. Hurry.

“I’m not going to send the Dominar to an unfamiliar location without a proper guard. Particularly not when he’s injured,” Iskaris said. “What do we know about how the dragons will receive him. They could flame the lot of them as soon as they arrive.”

The closest faces of the refugees registered terror at his words and I shook my head vigorously to them. Savette slipped off Eeamdor and rushed to calm the fearful among them, her white dress and blindfold glowing in the faint light. Iskaris was going to cause a revolt.

“We need to hurry.”

Hubric nodded, taking the pallet in a strong grip as I lowered one end towards him.

“Stop,” Iskaris said. “Put the Dominar back on that dragon and then clear these people off. We’ll get him to safety first – with a proper force of guards.”

“No time,” Hubric said gruffly.

I scanned the area looking for support. Could Hubric and I stand up to Iskaris on our own? These people needed protection – more even than the Dominar, though I was worried for him, vulnerable as he is. But there were babies and tiny children in that crowd of people. Tiny, desperate souls who were being chased by the things of nightmares. One little boy’s panicked eyes met mine – wet with tears. His little lashes blinked and another tear rolled down his smooth cheeks. I would do anything to prevent these children seeing more terrors.

Aliss was busy keeping her dragon steady. Ashana paced the circumference of the circle, kicking feet and bags back into the circle with harsh reminders that only what was inside the circle would be transported and that included limbs. And Savette... where was Savette?

There. She was standing beside the glowing stone pillar, her hands wrapping around it and the glow of her eyes piercing through the bandage.

“There’s plenty of time, Dragon Rider,” Iskaris said. “The Dominar is my top priority. No one else matters more, not filthy villagers and not you. He goes through that gateway and he goes with a proper guard.”

“Do you want him to go or not?” Hubric asked. “Because if you want him to go, then lend me a hand and let’s carry him over there before it’s too late.”

From the darkness, I heard a howling like a strong wind. I whipped around, staring into the darkness, but it didn’t take long to see the flickering fires that glowed in the eyes and mouths of the Ifrits as they rushed towards us. I bit off a scream, but the people in the circle didn’t bother to stop the cries of terror welling up from their throats. The only thing louder than their screams was the voice of Ashana.

“Stay inside the circle! No matter what, stay inside!” She grabbed a small girl who darted out of the circle, throwing her over her shoulder and stepping within the glowing glyph. “Whose girl is this?”

Before I could hear the answer, the people in the circle seemed to stretch and then vanish before my eyes, Ashana with them.

Chapter Fourteen

“Oops,” Savette said from her place by the pillar.

“Get him back on Raolcan!” Hubric yelled urgently, pushing the Dominar’s pallet back up. From the pallet came a moan, but I ignored it, clawing it back into place and scrambling for straps to fasten around his pallet. There would be none left for me, but I could cling to Raolcan without them.

I told you they wouldn’t be harmed.

I felt a swell of pride at that, but there was no time to respond to his smugness. Hubric was already half-running, half-stumbling back to Kyrowat as Raolcan whipped around to face the incoming Ifrits. Savette left the pillar, leaping onto Eeamdor’s back. The glowing glyph was gone, the last embers of the pillar’s power drained from use. There would be no escape there.

There may be other gateways in here somewhere.

Hopefully, those little children were safe with Ashana and Aliss and Daieseo.

Daieseo will make sure the dragons on the other end know what has occurred here. They will guard the innocent. Do not fear.

I wasn’t worried. These days I trusted dragons more than humans. What I was worried about was Rasipaer. When Ashana had entered the glyph with that child, they’d been separated.

He’s a big boy. He’ll be fine. If it were me, I’d be grateful to see you out of harm’s way.

But he hadn’t tried to get me into that circle.

You’re a Dragon Rider, not a porcelain doll. It is our honor to defend the weak – even if that means staring down a dozen Ifrits in the pitch black with the ruler of the Dominion tied to an old mattress on my back.

I swallowed and cinched the straps around the Dominar tighter. Was it lighter in here? I thought I could see his chest moving up and down as he breathed. He moved like he was trying to sit up using his missing arm. I placed a hand on his chest as yells and screams around us told me the Ifrits were almost here.

“Dominar?” I said. “If you can hear me, you need to lie still. You lost an arm and are gravely injured. You are on the back of a dragon as we flee for our lives, but if you squirm too much these straps will get loose and you’ll fall off. So, please stay still until it’s safe to move.”

I couldn’t tell if his moan was pain or acknowledgment.

Raolcan left the ground with a burst of speed, launching us into the air. Beside us, Eeamdor launched, too. That’s where the light was coming from! Savette had removed her blindfold and in the presence of the Ifrits, the glow was growing brighter and brighter.

“Hold the line!” Iskaris yelled, bracing himself, sword in hand. On either side of him, his Dragoons followed, the Silvers rearing up, ready to flame.

Was holding the line the right move? There was still time to flee. I scanned the other bridges. Which way would we go?

Rasipaer read the signpost. He said the way is not obvious, but it is between two likely paths.

And if we chose the wrong one?

There’s no way to tell what would happen. We’ll just have to play the hand we’ve been dealt.

The Ifrits closed in, but the first in line evaporated in a soundless boom.

Hold on tight. It’s about to get interesting.

Hubric flew by so close that I held my breath, ducking low over the Dominar.

“Hold back, Amel!” Hubric called. “The Dominar is too important to lose.”

Raolcan cursed in my mind. Knowing him, he’d been just about to dive into the ranks of Ifrits the way Kyrowat just did. Instead, Raolcan reared back, spinning to arc around to the back of the group.

Kyrowat flamed in steady bursts, Rasipaer following him in formation, filling in the gaps. Both dragons were cunning, and they seemed to avoid the grasp of the Ifrits with ease.

The problem was, we couldn’t afford to lose any of them. We needed to fall back to where we could flee again. In the bottleneck of a tunnel, we would only face one Ifrit at a time.

Not much of a consolation if you’re last in line.

A scream came from the Dragoons, but I was too distracted to look. Raolcan’s turn was too tight and I almost slipped from his back in my awkward position over the Dominar’s pallet. With a grimace I found a baggage strap and wound it around my waist, buckling it tight and then finding two more to make make-shift thigh straps. Heat blew back at me as Raolcan flamed at an Ifrit.

They’re overwhelming us. We must retreat. Rasipaer leads the way.

I looked up to see Rasipaer barrel past, his belly inches from the top of my head. I ducked, instinctively. Raolcan lunged in front of Eeamdor who was trying to spin for another attack. He shoved him towards Rasipaer instead.

Reds! Hotheads, all of them!

We were right behind Eeamdor and Hubric was behind us. He was screaming for the Dragoons to follow.

“Belay that!” Iskaris yelled. “We stand for our Dominar!”

“They’re too much for you! Flee!” Hubric called back as one of the Silver dragons was swept off the rock island by an Ifrit. He plunged with a flaming scream over the side. With his broken wings, he could not fly.

I’d never heard a dragon scream before. It seared me to the core. I bit my lip and held on tight to Raolcan, as if, somehow, I could keep him safe.

The world filled with light again as Savette launched a second attack, wiping out three Ifrits in a single moment. They exploded in clouds of dust, but a dozen more were pouring through the warrens toward us. If we stayed here, we would be overrun despite her efforts.

Through the clash and shouts of battle, a voice deep and heavy as an iron hammer smashed through to all our minds.

“Retreat.”

I didn’t need to look to know it was the Dominar.

Chapter Fifteen

When I joined Dragon School, I knew that riding a dragon wasn’t for the faint of heart, but I could barely keep my eyes open now as we corkscrewed through the warren passage. Raolcan was half flying, half scrambling like a worm through a garden bed. He was using wings and legs indiscriminately and after just a few moments I’d lost any sense of up or down as we climbed along walls, vaulted off ceilings, and soared anywhere there was enough room for his wings to get lift.

The second we’d hit the warrens, I’d had to double over top of the Dominar – body to body – to avoid being scraped off Raolcan’s back in our passage. I gripped my straps and his pallet to keep myself wedged that way, fear and adrenaline thundering through me so that I was a wash of intensity and anxiety. The world beyond was only something I saw in flashes and any sense of where our companions were, was completely lost.

I’m keeping track.

I didn’t want to think about the dragoons on foot. What had happened to them?

In situations like this – when running for your life – it’s best for each person to keep their mind on their own business.

But I couldn’t do that. Especially not with my body pressed up against the Dominar’s in a far-too-familiar way. His crown-mask dug into my shoulder and I bit my lip as every jostle of Raolcan’s movement brought pain from where the metal hit my bone and added pain where straps dug suddenly into waist or belly or thighs. Comfort was not our priority. Survival was.

“Where are we?” the Dominar asked. His voice was quiet, but whether that was because he was speaking softly or because the rush of my own heartbeat was too loud in my ears, I didn’t know.

“Dragon warrens under the Dragon Snout Mountains,” I said.

“We fled here,” he acknowledged. “After that grizzly run from the stronghold. How many of my men survived?”

I tried to remember how many people I saw standing when we fled the Ifrits.

“Five, I think, and one Silver dragon.” I fought against the memory of the other one falling off the edge of the rock island. I didn’t dare let my imagination dwell on what happened after he fell from view.

“We started with three hundred.”

Three hundred? That couldn’t be possible!

“Treachery from within our ranks and armies of demons set upon us. I lost track of what was happening sometime during the fall of Leedris City. My arm...”

“Is gone. We had to amputate it to stop the infection,” I said. I knew there was no use in trying to make it sound nice. There was nothing nice or pleasant about losing something as precious as half your physical capability.

“An acceptable loss.”

He clearly hadn’t been trying to live his whole life with a useless limb if he found the loss ‘acceptable.’ But I supposed that compared to losing two hundred and ninety-five friends it might not be that big of a deal. I wasn’t even sure if that number included dragons.

It doesn’t. Rasipaer has made an exception to our usual rules about communicating with humans and is filling the Dominar in on our situation. As the dragon of the Top Rider, it is his right.

None of us might live to see the day out, so usual rules probably didn’t matter too much.

Purples have stayed hidden this long because we don’t advertise. We have rules for a reason. Hold tight!

We squeezed through a tight space and I felt Raolcan fighting to get his legs through without crushing us on his back.

If the Dominar can make it without that pallet, we need to set it loose. See if you can move him when we get into this open area.

We’d arrived at another hub, but there was no light in this wide area except for the light of Savette’s eyes near the front of the group. The only way I realized it was open was when we stopped pinwheeling through the warren and soared straight and level.

“Can you ride without being strapped onto a pallet?” My tone matched my emotions – urgent.

“Yes.” His tone impressed me. If I had been answering, there would have been less surety in my voice.

“Okay, I’m going to unstrap you. You’ll have to hold on to me so that you don’t fall when the straps are off.”

“Agreed.”

I swallowed a lump in my throat, my mind completely filled with the task of loosening his straps without losing him over the side of Raolcan.

I unfastened the first one that was keeping his chest tight to the pallet and as soon as he was free he sat up, wrapping his arm good arm around my waist as I worked the second set of straps that held his waist to the pallet. Together, we shuffled off of the mattress as we loosened each strap. The straps had gone around both the Dominar and the mattress, so as I freed them, the mattress caught the air, whipping in the wind. I fought against the last strap, finally loosening it and the mattress flapped hard, pulling free and flying toward the chasm below.

I refastened the first strap around the Dominar’s waist in the proper, dragon rider manner. My breath hitched in my throat as I realized suddenly what I was doing. I’d been so focused on the task that I hadn’t realized how close I was sitting to the ruler of our entire Dominion. Too close. I froze, fearful of treating him too personally. It was different now that he was conscious of what was happening than it had been when he was ill.

“Can you help me?” He asked. “I’ve never strapped in with just one hand, and I’m not sure that I can put the shoulder straps on by myself – or any of the others for that matter. I will need to learn to fasten buckles with one hand.”

I swallowed, uncertain about where to start.

“I promise, I won’t bite,” he said.

Nervously, I strapped him in the rest of the way and helped him turn to face the right direction before fastening myself in properly. Now that the pallet was gone, there were more straps to work with and I’d better use them or Raolcan would be furious. Besides, it took my mind off the fact that I’d practically hugged the ruler of our lands.

Not practically, Amel, actually. He had his arm around you. That’s quite the honor, I hear, although to be fair his thoughts were entirely on how to fight the agonizing pain in his arm, not in how close he was to the Dragon Rider helping him.

Chapter Sixteen

We didn’t stop, though Rasipaer dove around us, heading back the way we came. What was he doing?

He’s swooping down to gather up any dragoons that survived our flight.

Raolcan’s mental tone was grim. Were there any who survived? I craned my neck to look for survivors, but it was too dark to see.

Iskaris and two others live. Inrujee perished in our retreat. There was no chance for all of them to live – on foot and wounded as they were.

We should have gone back for them and loaded them on our dragons.

Then we would all be dead.

It felt too cold to think that way.

We saved as many as we could at the first gateway. What were the chances that all the refugees would fit within the glyph? I would have liked to send the Dominar and Savette with them, but we had no time. Even so, the light shone on us when we were able to get them safely away. I mourn the deaths of my brothers, but we are close to our own end, Amel. We can not spare energy second-guessing, we can only make the best choices we can in each moment, remembering that one false dive could be our last.

I shivered and placed my palms flat against his back to feel his warmth and remember we were still alive.

Savette is recovering from our last battle. Perhaps she will find the energy to use one of these fading gateways.

Now that was an idea with some weight to it!

Hubric’s idea. He is five steps ahead of the rest of us – it helps that he truly believes in her and the Ibrenicus prophecies. Rasipaer continues to explain our situation to the Dominar. He is taking it well, considering what is happening.

Maybe Savette could use the dead gateway at the center of this hub. We were almost there - the black statue outlined by Savette’s gaze.

No, not this one. She needs one that has a little energy of its own, so she can see how it works. She’s never done this before.

Would she be able to do it now? She wasn’t a Magika. Her power worked differently.

She also isn’t a dragon and this is dragon magic, not Magika magic.

What was the difference?

Our magic is the magic of roots pulling water from the ground. We draw on life from within the earth. The magikas do this also, but more like finding wells here and there, where we siphon it out. Savette does none of those things. She reminds things of the truth of what they are.

Details aside, we’d need to find a lit gateway to do that. Raolcan dove suddenly, and my arms wrapped around the Dominar without thinking as we corkscrewed through the air in a downward barrel roll and then shot out of it like an arrow, zipping in an unpredictable pattern. My eyes shut of their own accord and all I could do was hold on and fight down the nausea and spinning headache that accompanied this insanity. It felt like a full minute before we climbed again, leveling off and slowing down. I opened my eyes, taking great, heaving breaths and screamed as a hand made of wind and dust snatched toward me. Raolcan spun away, seconds before it plucked me from his back.

They’re too fast. They’re everywhere. They led us into a trap.

Chapter Seventeen

How had they arrived here before us?

There are many ways in!

I scanned the area looking through the darkness for everyone else. Gouts of flame were all I could see of the dragons. Perhaps I could have seen them in the light of the flames, but Raolcan was maneuvering too erratically for me to keep my eyes fixed on any one point.

They’re faster than me.

Things must be bad if he was admitting weakness. The Dominar slumped against my chest. The erratic ride must have been too much for his weak body. I wrapped both arms around him, keeping him from injury as best as I could. Raolcan spat flames and then spun himself to the side. Why did he bother?

It hurts them. Just not enough. There need to be more of us – at least four or five for each Ifrit.

Then why do it at all?

It slows them. Distracts them while Savette works.

If she spent all her energy fighting Ifrits, she’d burn it all away and we would never be able to use a gateway to get out of here.

If she doesn’t, then we have no offensive weapon.

And then we die, one by one in the velvet dark of the warrens. I swallowed down bile, clutched the Dominar close and bit my lip. There was nothing I could add right now except hope and faith in Raolcan. He had to know that I trusted him and believed he could get us out of this alive. I fed my confidence and faith into him through our mental bond, thinking hard about how much I loved him, about how amazing his strength and faithfulness were. It was all I had to give him.

The dank smell of moisture in a closed space filled my nose and I shut my eyes against the nausea-inducing sight of flames and light flashing at sudden unexpected moments while we rolled and wove around enemies I couldn’t make out in the dark. Something hit me – not hard enough to injure me badly, but enough that I was knocked mostly off of Raolcan’s back and had to scramble to straighten myself. The Dominar hung from his safety straps.

If only I knew his name so that I could call to him and tell him I was helping. Instead, I worked silently, hauling him back up, inch by inch, sweat forming across my brow and my mouth dry from effort and fear.

Work faster. We are going to be in a tight place again in a moment.

I’d need to tighten the play on those safety straps so he didn’t jar loose the next time we were attacked.

That wasn’t an attack. Kyrowat flew too close avoiding an Ifrit.

I finally had the Dominar in place, his safety straps tightened so he wouldn’t be able to move more than an inch in any direction.

We missed our chance at the warren. It’s blocked. We’re trying a different arm.

How would we know which one to take? No one had been able to read the center hub this time.

It won’t make a difference. We aren’t heading anywhere in particular except for away from these Ifrits – if we can get away. They might be at the next hub, too.

I heard a cry from behind us and Raolcan made a nasty noise like a cross between a hiss and a bark. Savette lit up like a torch ahead of us, Eeamdor somersaulting upward in a loop, and then she was facing the space behind us. I closed my eyes tight, but the flare of her light still left purple after-images across my vision.

Lean down over the Dominar and get as flat as you can. She’s bought us enough time to make it into these tunnels.

I obeyed, pushing the Dominar flat and lying over top of him, arms spread out around us and clinging to the saddle, my teeth gritted, breathing fast, and nerves tingling. Something scraped across my back and I clenched my jaw hard to keep from screaming. I was bumped and jarred from every direction, like a rock tumbling down a hill, but I had the impression that I – we – were being squeezed.

It’s very tight. We are going in first. Skies and stars, if I never see you again, at least let me not get stuck!

The rock scraped across my cheek and I squeezed my eyes tight. Nothing else could move. The breath seemed to press out of my lungs, each breath more shallow than the last. I half-sobbed – more in panic than in pain. Beneath me, I heard the Dominar moan.

Just as I was beginning to fear we were going to die like that, there was a sudden thrashing push and we were free. I eased my weight off the Dominar, pushing my hair out of my face. My hands came away wet and sticky, but Raolcan wasn’t stopping. He corkscrewed through the warren like a dragon with his tail on fire, though I felt exhaustion in his movements. They were clumsier than usual, lacking his usual effortless grace.

I’m afraid I used up a lot of energy kicking through that tight space.

How would Rasipaer do with three men on his back?

Two men. One died at the last hub. Maybe more. They would have had to wait for us to push through that tight space.

I wrapped my arms around the Dominar again. Judging by the way his body slumped and rolled with every one of Raolcan’s movements, he was out cold. The minutes drew out long, leaving a taste of acid and iron in my mouth. The taste of fear turned my stomach and made each second ring with importance.

I choked back a sob of relief when fresh air hit my face and Raolcan burst from the tight warren into a wide hub in a gentle soar. This time, there was a faint flicker of light at the hub. As we sped towards it, I risked a look behind my back, relieved to see Kyrowat pushing through the warren behind us. We hadn’t lost my mentor yet. I fixed my eyes on the hub, anticipation building. Maybe this time there would be a way out.

It grew closer and closer and then suddenly, Raolcan spun back towards the warren. What happened? Was there an Ifrit I hadn’t seen?

Savette and Eeamdor need help.

Chapter Eighteen

Eeamdor crawled out of the warren to the wide bridge on the other side – were these bridges wider? – lit in the other-worldly blue light of the central hub. One of his wings was crumpled at his side and the other was completely gone. Savette was nowhere to be seen. I looked at his back a second time, certain I must be wrong, my breath speeding in panic.

Calm. Look beside Eeamdor.

She was walking beside her dragon on the wider bridge and for the first time since the healing arches, her eyes were dark. No, no, no! She turned her face toward me as if she could still see me, but there was not a flicker of light behind her blindfold. I had thought it was hard to hope before. Now, I felt only ice where hope had been. I’d counted on her magic to get us out of this hole in the ground. I’d been counting on a miracle. And what about Eeamdor? What did a dragon do if he lost a wing?

Underneath me, Raolan shuddered, giving me my answer. There was no coming back from losing a wing when you were a dragon. It was as bad – maybe worse than my leg and the Dominar’s arm.

I swallowed hard, trying to think of what to say or do. Raolcan was circling as if he was watching Savette’s back for trouble, and Kyrowat swooped in and landed beside them, quickly loading Savette up with Hubric on his own back. That made sense. Eeamdor could not carry her now, and now – more than ever – we had to hurry. Where was Rasipaer?

Stuck. Fortunately, the Ifrits are also stuck. They can squeeze more than we can – shape their body to fit the tunnel – but it takes time to adjust their corporeal forms.

Good. We needed time. Eeamdor limped toward the hub with Kyrowat flying beside him. Hubric signed encouragement to me – an ‘all’s well’ sign and a ‘keep it up’ sign. He didn’t bother to sign instructions. At this point, our dragons were the ones making the strategy decisions and I knew that while Hubric might have something to offer to them, there was no way I could help.

Raolcan circled near the entrance and I could tell from the way his body moved that he was tense.

I don’t want to get too close. If an Ifrit comes out next ... I have you and the Dominar to worry about. But I don’t want to leave yet, either. Rasipaer and his riders have yet to emerge. They might need help – like Savette did.

Wise. Raolcan was surprisingly wise about everything. Eeamdor and Kyrowat had just reached the hub when Rasipaer’s gnarled snout shoved through the warren and out into the light beyond. He flamed irritably and shoved off from the ground in a weary soar. On his back sat a single figure – Iskaris. This journey had not been easy on the Dominar’s guardians. We took up a spot on his flank, winging our way to the center hub. Iskaris drooped in the saddle, shaking his head occasionally like he was having trouble staying awake. He favored his right side and clutched the saddle desperately, like he might fall off at any time. Maybe he might. I didn’t know how he’d lost his companions and just thinking of it made me shudder.

One was killed by an Ifrit. The other didn’t survive the squeeze through the narrow part of the tunnel.

Unbidden, a memory of that journey rose to my mind, only this time I envisioned what it would have felt like to be smashed against the rock instead of merely battered by it. My own face and shoulder throbbed painfully at the memory, but I couldn’t dwell on that now. If we survived this we could take a count of our injuries. Until then, we had to press on.

Raolcan was the last to land beside the pillar. He set down wearily next to Kyrowat, their massive chests heaving in synchronized deep breathing as they caught their breath from the long retreat.

Hubric had his hands on the central pillar, studying it with Savette as Iskaris slid off Rasipaer and joined them.

“Get us out of here,” Iskaris said. “As quickly as you can.”

Chapter Nineteen

If I dismounted, I would have to leave the Dominar slumped over Raolcan, whereas this way I could hold him up, his head leaning against me. That had to be better for an injured man, right? They should have taught me this better in Dragon School. If Ashana was here she would have had a few sharp words about that.

She’s probably got all the refugees to safety and is fretting for Rasipaer now.

I liked that thought. Could Rasipaer feel her so far away?

No. Our range is incredible, Amel. Few riders can feel their dragons from so far as you can feel me.

I felt a warmth at that despite the cold darkness around us, but there was a crackling feeling when I tried to smile. Blood must have dried across my cheek. At least we’d made it through that rock wringer alive.

“We’re trying to see if we can get it to work on its own,” Hubric said from the pillar. “The last time it had plenty of energy and Ashana knew what she was doing. This time, I’m not sure it has enough.”

“It doesn’t,” Savette said, wearily, placing her head in her hands. “And neither do I.”

“You can’t give up now, girl.” Hubric’s words were gentle, but his steel core was closer to the surface than usual. We were all worn down.

“Well, don’t just sit there! Do something!” Iskaris barked. “We have the Dominar to protect! Let’s get that girl down to help you.”

I had misjudged him. He must not be Dusk Covenant or why would he care so much about the Dominar? Why would the Ifrits be attacking him?

The Dominar is more important to the Dusk Covenant alive than dead. Don’t mistake a desire to keep him alive for loyalty to the Dominion. The Dusk Covenant wants the Dominion for themselves. They will use any tool necessary – including the Dominar.

But then he could just leave with the Dominar and the Ifrits, couldn’t he?

It’s possible that they have turned on him. I doubt the Dusk Covenant can control them like they think they can. Ifrits have their own goals and desires that no mere humans can dictate. Iskaris has his own goals, too, though they are murky to me.

It made a lot of logical sense.

Just don’t trust him. We don’t know for sure who he is.

“Calm yourself,” Hubric said. He didn’t even bother to look up at Iskaris. He was conserving his energy. “Savette, do you know why the power is so dim?”

“I’ve used up too much.” Her voice was small.

“It’s the power of truth, isn’t it? The power to make things true again?”

She nodded her head.

“So, you need help thinking of the truth and bringing it back.”

“This isn’t helping,” Iskaris fumed. “We need to set up a defense.”

“Shut up. I’m working.” I’d never heard Hubric so terse. “Amel, come here, please.”

Gently, I leaned the Dominar over onto Raolcan’s back, grabbed my crutch from its spot and slid down to the ground, hurrying to his side. Hubric must have a plan.

“Savette needs help. Come here. Sit beside her and take her hand, and I’ll take the other.”

“What are we going to do?” I hurried to obey, but I couldn’t see what he had in mind yet.

“We’re going to give her our minds.”

Chapter Twenty

“I don’t understand,” Savette said.

“You’re out of truth and the healing that comes from it,” Hubric said. “Or rather, you’re out of hope so you can’t hold the truth of it in your mind anymore. Amel and I are Purples. We are dedicated to truth. Our dragons are Purples. They love the truth and guard it carefully, too. Kyrowat and Raolcan are going to channel our minds to you and you’re going to take all the truth, and hope, and power that you need to fire up this gateway and get us all somewhere else. Rasipaer will tune it as best as he can, but honestly, anywhere is better than here right now. Remember the words of the prophecy: ‘For in the day of darkness the Chosen One will find hope in our hearts, and from hope truth, and from truth, light that opens doors.’”

I licked my lips. Did I trust Savette enough to let her in my head like that? To offer up hope and truth? What if she took all of it and I had nothing left. I’d never heard of anything like this, but I’d seen what she did to the Ifrits. What if she couldn’t help doing that to me, too?

I’m not big on trust, either, but don’t worry, she has to go through me to get to you. I’ll stop the access if it starts to harm you.

That’s all I could ask for. I pushed an encouraging smile onto my face and gripped Savette and Hubric’s hands in mine.

“Begin when you’re ready,” Hubric said.

“This is nonsense,” Iskaris said, leaping off of Rasipaer to the ground beside us. “The Ifrits will be here at any moment. If you can’t make this gateway thing work, then we need to flee.”

His fears only reinforced my own. I tried to think about something other than Iskaris. Somewhere out there, Leng was either in hiding or fleeing for his life. Somewhere, Rakturan sailed across the Eastern Sea to his homeland to convince them war was not the answer. Somewhere Ashana was worrying about Rasipaer. Somewhere Lenora and Ephretti fought the Dusk Covenant. All those things made me more nervous than hopeful. I felt Raolcan reach out to me and I leaned into the comfort of his vast mind. That was hope. In the middle of terror and desperation, there was one person who was always there for me, who put me ahead of himself, who wanted nothing but good for me, who had risked himself and his own honor to choose me in the first place.

I leaned into that sense of Raolcan and that gratitude for his friendship, treasuring the hope of it, remembering the truth of it. I didn’t know when Savette began to draw on that, but I felt a tug in me as if she were drawing on our hopes.

In the background, I watched as Iskaris slid the Dominar off Raolcan, carrying him to the center of the sigil beside us. My mind grew thick, but I held onto that feeling of hope. It was a good thing that he was bringing the Dominar close. Maybe even Iskaris was not who I thought he was. Maybe he really did care only about the Dominar.

A roar met my ears. At first, I thought it was from the light springing up in Savette’s eyes, but Iskaris’s battle cry rang out just after it. The Ifrits were here. I tried to turn my head to look, but I was frozen in place. I saw Hubric’s eyes shift, but his head was locked in place, just like mine. The glow around Savette grew as orange glowing light burst over the center statue and heat flared at my back. Behind us, dragons fought Ifrits for our lives. The roar of lizard anger met the hiss of angry earth demons.

I lost track of time as my emotions and thoughts swirled within me, dragged out for Savette’s use. Everything melded into screams, shouts and horrifying cries but at the center, I held on to that thread of hope inside me. I couldn’t let it go.

Savette’s light was blinding, filling not just the area around the signpost, but the whole hub. As if a dam broke loose, I could suddenly move again. Hubric tugged us to the sigil in the floor, around the Dominar. I stole a glance at Raolcan, gasping when I saw him joining Rasipaer in a deadly battle with an Ifrit. How would we get the dragons out of here if we had to get them all into the sigil at once?

There were three Ifrits attacking them, and as they fought, I saw one more squeezing out of the warren and into the open space. With each moment it took us to gather the power to leave, our foes grew in number. I bit my lip, gripping Savette’s hand tighter, wishing she could hurry things.

And then the unthinkable happened. I was staring urgently at Savette’s face when Hubric cried out, his eyes looking past me. I turned just in time to be knocked off my feet and thrown into the air. The world tumbled. Nothing felt real, not the glimpse of Savette and Hubric flying through the air beside me, or the view of Eeamdor’s massive body skidding past along the rock. I realized in a flash that his tail had hit us, knocking us into the air, but as I began to fall back I saw him continue his skid, claws scrambling desperately as he disappeared over the edge of the hub. Savette screamed.

I didn’t have time to see more before the earth came up out of nowhere and smacked me in the face. Everything went black.

Chapter Twenty-One

Up, up, up! Raolcan was screaming in my head.

I blinked my eyes open. I was on the ground. Everything hurt. My head ... oh, my head ... every blink sent shattering pain through my skull. I just needed to rest here a moment. I let my eyes close.

No time. Up.

A claw grabbed me, scooping me up. Should I be fighting? I opened my eyes just a slit. Savette sat in the middle of the sigil, hands pressed to the ground, but white light surrounded her. Kyrowat dropped Hubric in front of her, wheeling to flame an Ifrit hand that snatched out at him. Where were Iskaris and Rasipaer? Where was the Dominar? What about Eeamdor?

Eeamdor is dead.

Raolcan! Where was he?

Who do you think is carrying you?

We entered the circle, and everything went dark again.

Darkness.

I opened my eyes.

“Get in the circle now, or you’ll be left behind!” Hubric was shouting. Who did he mean? Me? Not me. I saw Iskaris running across the ground, the Dominar in his arms. He stumbled, falling to the ground.

I reached awkwardly for my crutch. Yes, it was still there! Pulled myself up on wobbly legs. The world tilted wildly, making me dizzy, but I fought through it, dragging myself to their side and bending down to help Iskaris drag the Dominar over the line to the sigil. The look he shot my way was so strange that I didn’t know what to think about it until I looked down. One of his arms was missing, blood dripping from the stump – the exact arm that the Dominar had lost fleeing these same enemies. I opened my mouth to ask him if he needed help, but felt my knees buckle beneath me.

Darkness. Something cold was pressed against my face.

I opened my eyes. We – the humans – were all in the circle, though someone was keening with sobs. Was that Savette?I didn’t see Raolcan, but Kyrowat streaked by, flaming at an enemy and the Dominar was conscious, he was pushing a slumped person over the edge of the sigil. Iskaris? If he succeeded, the man would be left here.

Stop passing out. We need you conscious.

Like a person could control that. I crawled towards Iskaris. No man should be left here. The Dominar left him, stumbling back to the center of the sigil, blood leaking from his wounded shoulder. Pain seared into me and the bright light white became thicker until it filled me and everything around me.  I grabbed Iskaris, rolling us both back into the sigil and holding on tight to him. He felt smaller in person than he’d looked when I first met him.

I felt a sensation like stretching and then darkness.

I opened my eyes.

I was falling, air rushing around me. Or was I? Was this a dream?

Nope. It’s just you falling to your death. Here, let me save you again.

Strong claws snatched me from the air as everything went dark again.

This time I felt like I was out for a lot longer before my eyes snapped open. I was being carried in Raolcan’s strong hands, but something felt very wrong with my body.

You’re gravely injured. Don’t fear. I will get you help in time.

Savette? Hubric? I’d saved someone at the last minute. Iskaris. Had he made it?

We are scattered. I don’t know where everyone is. We fly like the wind to the heart of my homeland.

The Dominion?

The Lands of Haz’drazen.

I felt light, like I was going to fly off all on my own and go visit those clouds over there.

Stay with me.

Beneath us the land was black, but on the horizon, a sliver of pink light glinted over the horizon.

I won’t leave you. I’m here, spider.

Was Raolcan okay? He sounded strange.

We’ll get you to safety. Please, stay strong.

Everything went black again.

Read the rest of Amel’s story in Dragon School: Bright Hopes

Behind the Scenes:

USA Today bestselling author, Sarah K. L. Wilson, hails from the rocky Canadian Shield in Northern Ontario where she lives with her husband and two small boys. Her interests include the outdoors, history, and philosophy. Her books are always about fantastical adventures in other worlds.

Sarah would like to thank Harold Trammel, Eugenia Kollia, and Sarah Brown for their incredible work in beta reading and proofreading this book. Without their big hearts and passion for stories, this book would not be the same.

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Visit Sarah’s website for a complete list of available titles.

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Table of Contents

Title Page

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

Chapter Eight

Chapter Nine

Chapter Ten

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty-One

Behind the Scenes: