Page 135 of Kingdom of Shadows and Wings

“Okay.” Wind whipping my braid, I nudge Zephyr with my heels.

He stretches his neck out, putting on a burst of speed. I don’t dare twist around again to see if the dragon’s still behind us. At least none of my body parts have been roasted off.

I make a wide circle on Zephyr and breathe a sigh of relief when the orange dragon is nowhere near us. But she’s after my friends.

Tailing Abel and Thorin now, the dragon opens her powerful jaws. Fear zips through me at the sight of the white-hot flame in her throat.

“Watch out!” It’s the only warning I have time to utter as fire erupts from her mouth and shoots toward Abel.

Swerving Thorin to the left, Abel leans forward and flattens his body against the animal. The blaze licks across the tip of the alicorn’s right wing, igniting the feathers. The flame flickers to life and spreads.

No. This can’t be?—

“I’m coming!” From somewhere above us, Nick dives down with Solara, hurdling toward Abel and Thorin.

He’ll put out the fire. The alicorn will live. Abel will be fine.

If I hadn’t yelled…if Nick couldn’t wield water…

I can’t even finish those thoughts. Ididyell. Nickcanwield water. And Iwill notlose my friends today.

Warmth hums just below my skin as I call on my magic and focus my ire on the orange dragon. Hovering on Zephyr, I lift my hands. The heat intensifies as my will becomes one with the fire inside me. Flame erupts from my fingertips and engulfs the beast.

The creature’s roar drips with pain and rage. Thrashing her blazing wings, the dragon plummets toward the ground.

Some fifteen feet behind the dragon, Nova lands. Much like I did, Olive lifts her hands. Cupping them to her mouth, she blows out a gust of wind that fans the already blazing inferno.

Clever thinking.

Hands raised and aimed at the dragon, Olive and I exchange a glance as I ride Zephyr to the ground. She flashes a distracted smile before refocusing on the dragon.

In the back of my mind, something I learned weeks ago niggles its way in. Dragon scales protect against undiluted eyril. They’re also fire resistant. Does that mean the dragon is slowly being cooked alive from the heat without actually burning?

The thought makes me nauseous. I don’t want to kill this creature, and I certainly don’t want to torture her. But what other choice do I have when confronted with a dangerous, out-of-control dragon? If I don’t put her out of her misery, she’ll go after my unit until every one of us is dead.

An onslaught of images and emotions slams into me, and my body trembles. If I weren’t on Zephyr, I know my knees would buckle.

Anguish, rage, terror, desperation. I lock eyes with the creature, and somehow, I know this is all from her. Just like with the black dragon before he escaped. Before Ifreedhim.

In her right mind or not, I can’t let this dragon die.

Something inside me snaps. “Rein in your magic!” I lower my hands, pulling the flames away from the dragon. “We’re killing her.”

“What?” Olive shoots me an incredulous look. “Lark, she’ll killus.”

“She’s in agony. I think…I think I can connect with her.” IhopeI can connect with her. “Just trust me.”

“I do trust you.” Shaking her head, Olive lowers her hands. “I just hope I don’t regret this.”

The wind stops, and the flames die out. Remarkably, the orange dragon appears relatively unscathed. She tucks in her mighty wings and settles her tormented golden gaze on Olive.

The dragon opens her mouth, releasing a blast of fire aimed right at my friend. The blaze engulfs alicorn and rider before they can so much as flinch.

Horror fists my heart and squeezes.

Nothing remains of Olive except a pile of ash.

She’s gone.

---