Page 38 of Storm In The Sky

Winter wasn’t sure what he’d expected, but nothing happened. Dallin closed the box, and the ceramic dragon disappeared from view. It didn’t explode or anything like that. It was just gone, and with it, the purple flames that had been burning the forest around them. All were gone, leaving in place a normal fire. It was still burning, but it was much less potent than it had been minutes earlier.

“All right,” Jarvis said as he raised his hands. Some of the flames around them vanished. “Let’s get back to work.”

Several of the dragons pushed up to fly away, probably toward the lake to get some water, but Winter wasn’t going anywhere. As long as Keylon was here, he wasn’t moving. His job was to protect Keylon, and that was what he’d do.

* * * *

All of them were dirty and sweaty, but they weren’t finished yet. Knowing that made Keylon want to cry. He wanted out of this forest. He wanted a shower and food and never to think about a fire again.

But instead of running back to the castle, he moved closer to Penley. “Is there anything you can do?” he asked.

Penley wrinkled his nose. His hair was all over the place, and there were burned marks on his t-shirt. From what Keylon could see, the skin underneath was intact, which was a miracle.

“Will you make sure the fire doesn’t touch me?” Penley asked.

Bennett had left with Marlow and Meyer, probably to get water from the lake. That meant that Penley didn’t have his shield—but he still had protection. He always had and always would.

Keylon nodded and raised his hands to extinguish a patch of fire that was too close for comfort. “I’ll make sure you’re not burned.”

Penley grinned at him and crouched. He pushed away some of the leaves and ashes on the ground, then pressed his hand against the dirt. It took him a moment, but the fire surrounding them slowed down. It didn’t entirely disappear, but that wasn’t a problem, because a wave of water hit them by surprise.

Keylon spluttered and looked up at Marlow, who was already flying back toward the lake. He was holding a massive plastic container, which was now empty.

“You planned for this,” Keylon said as he turned toward Jarvis.

Jarvis looked sad and exhausted. “I planned for anything Carlyle might do if he returned. This wasn’t just for him, though. It would be too easy for a fire to start here during the summer when it doesn’t rain enough. I wasn’t sure we’d be able to use the containers before we found the dragons, but they’re here now.”

They were, and they were helping. Meyer appeared on the horizon, carrying another container. He was flying slowly, no doubt because it was full of water. He didn’t dump it on them like Marlow had. Instead, he chose a spot a bit further away, closer to the castle.

Keylon might have been shocked by the water, but it felt good. He was drenched and dirty, but he finally wasn’t feeling like he’d be melting in seconds anymore.

Jarvis sighed. “Let’s get to work so we can return to the castle.”

Between all the mages, it still took them almost an hour to extinguish the fire. The dragons continued flying back and forth and helping by dumping water over the trees.

Even once it was over, Keylon half expected the fire to start burning again. As they walked back toward the castle, he couldn’t help but look around, searching for more flames.

There weren’t any. The only thing left was destruction, and while Keylon knew the forest would regrow, it would take decades for it to return to what it had been before.

“I’ll take care of it,” Penley said from where he was sitting on Bennett’s back—his human back because Bennett was giving him a piggy-back ride.

He’d collapsed after extinguishing as much fire as he could, which hadn’t made Bennett happy. He’d helped Penley to climb on his back and had refused to let him down since. Keylon didn’t think Penley minded. He looked like he might be about to fall asleep right there and then.

“What do you mean?” Winter asked.

He was back in his human form, too, but he was still hovering close to Keylon as if ready to carry him, too, if Keylon needed him to. Keylon was tempted since his legs felt shaky, but he could walk.

Penley gave Winter a tired smile. “My specialty is nature magic. It’ll take time, but I think I can coax the forest to grow faster.”

That would be incredible to watch, but it wouldn’t happen anytime soon. They were all too exhausted.

Keylon stumbled, but he didn’t have to worry about falling on his face because Winter was there. He caught him and pulled him close, and he didn’t let go. He hooked an arm around Keylon’s waist and slowed them down so they wouldn’t stumble on each other’s feet as they walked. Keylon didn’t care. He leaned against Winter’s side, grateful for the support and for the feeling of being protected.

They were all exhausted, sweaty, and dirty. Keylon was sure everyone around him wanted a shower and to go to sleep. Thankfully, they wouldn’t have to wait long. The castle loomed on the horizon, and once they were close enough, Keylon saw that the back door was open. People were standing there, clearly waiting for them. None of them dared leave the castle’s protection, but when they got closer, Keylon saw thateveryonewas there.

Jillian was hugging Marlow’s son and making sure he didn’t run out. Thorne and Matthias were so close to each other they might as well have been hugging, too. Matthias looked like he wanted to run, just like Marlow’s son, but he stayed where he was.

The mages’ assistants were present, too. Keylon didn’t have one, but several of his brothers did, and no one was missing. Keylon could have cried. In fact, he was pretty sure a tear leaked from his eye.

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