Page 70 of Ash and Feather

Without warning, I swung my fire-wrapped hand forward, launching the javelin of flame toward the same tree.

She threw even faster, and her aim was deathly precise; the first target was hers.

With that, we were off, the game officially underway with a rush of smoke and searing wind.

After beating me to a dozen more targets, she glanced back while still racing forward. Her eyes blazed. Her smile was bright, her nostrils flaring as they inhaled what she believed to be the sweet scent of imminent victory. I even heard her thoughts already claiming that victory:I win.

But I’d spoken the truth.

I had no intention of losing.

I pushed harder, gathering speed before leaping into the air. Wings unfurled from my back, sending a shower of embers raining down. I soared high enough to see the entirety of our course trailing out below me. Fire swirled around both my hands this time.

I forged more than spears; the flames started as these simply-shaped weapons, but soon sprouted claws, lithe bodies, angled heads, and wings that rivaled my own in strength and size.

A controlling flick of my wrist, and the beasts roared brighter before combining into one that spiraled down, down, down, past Karys, weaving a path back and forth across the creek, setting fire to every tree and bush along the way.

We reached a spot where the creek spilled into a small, turquoise-colored lake—a finish line. I landed lightly on the edge of this larger body of water, turning to face Karys as she caught up.

“Better luck next time,” I said, grinning.

“Cheater,” she grumbled, tucking pieces of her disheveled braid back into place. “First the wings, andthen summoning an extra beast to do your bidding?”

“It was not a separate beast,” I informed her, still grinning despite the sour look she fixed on me. “It was an extension of myself, as are the wings.”

She let out a sigh. “Fine. You win.This time, at least.”

I flexed my right wing, concentrating magic toward a spot where the feathers were losing some of their definition. “It would probably be helpful if you remembered that, too, by the way—that your magic is an extension of you, I mean. Not a separate beast to be mastered.”

I’d mentioned this to her before, but now, it seemed to trouble her for some reason.

She averted her gaze as she considered the words.

“Maybe that’s my problem with all of this,” she said after a moment. “I can’t think ofanythingas an extension of myself for too long, because I’m not sure who that selfis anymore. One moment I want to embrace the new wildly powerful, magical side of me. The next, I’m thinking about who I was before. I know it’s useless, standing in the middle, yet I can’t seem to get myself to step to one side or the other most of the time. So I keep losing my balance when the stakes are raised.”

I frowned. “You’ve already managed to balance an impressive amount of magic for such a short period of time. More than any other goddess or god I can think of.”

She shrugged off the compliment. “Maybe.”

“And maybe you’re being too hard on yourself.”

She didn’t respond to this. Her gaze drifted to my wings. “How long did it take you to master that particular extension of you?”

“Much longer than you’ve had,” I said, pointedly.

She was undeterred. “Is traveling with them more difficult than transporting yourself from place to place with magic?”

“Yes and no.”

She narrowed her eyes and crossed her ams, clearly not satisfied with this response.

“It requires more concentration in the beginning of the spell,” I elaborated, “as well as more of your own power. Butafter that, I think it’s easier, being in full control of where you’re going.”

She turned this over in silence, craning her neck to better see her back, as if mapping out the best spots and proper angles any appendages could sprout from.

“It’s harder to do it when you’re standing perfectly still on the ground,” I told her, “and not inneedof wings.”

“So you’re saying I should wait until we’re in the middle of a competition…when I need to cheat in order to beat you?”

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