Page 116 of Fear the Flames
“I never said being insane was a bad thing.”
My steps falter when a booming roar echoes behind us. Cayden and I both stop in our tracks and pivot on our heels to face the castle. A blazing flame shoots toward the tower the dragons escaped from. Another two dragons sink their talons into the already gaping hole and rip it further apart. They’re destroying their cage. A sense of pride shoots through me.
I feel a tug in my chest that travels its way up to my mind. I don’t have time to analyze it before the ground begins to rumble at our feet. I can’t see the soldiers coming, but I know at least a hundred horseback soldiers are riding our way. We whip forward and resume our sprint. The more I run, the stronger the pull in my chest and head grows.
I see a pair of orange eyes when I blink.
I shut them again.
Blue eyes.
Again.
Orange eyes.
Again.
Blue eyes.
Only three dragons are tearing apart the castle; the other two are missing. The rumbling grows stronger, and I know they’re gaining on us. An arrow slices through the air and jams into the tree trunk right next to my head. I don’t stop, I just keep running.
Fire, a smoky whisper forms in my brain while I force my mind to tug on the pulling sensation.
Fire, the thought gets louder.
“That’s the princess! Don’t let her get away!” someone shouts behind us. Cayden and I cut through a narrow set of trees while another set of arrows is shot our way. The arrows bounce off the thick trunks, skimming my bruised leg and the top of Cayden’s shoulder.
“Fire,” I say out loud, ignoring the throbbing sensation in my leg. The pull becomes overwhelming. Cayden’s head jerks toward me before he’s forced to look forward again.
“Elowen, what are you—”
“Fire!” I scream. “Burn them all!” Something snaps into place, and two roars come from above. A forceful warmth blazes at our backs, and the scent of burning flesh and screams of agony penetrate my senses. I don’t turn around to see what I’ve done, not because I can’t handle it, but because I don’t want to waste our lead. We won’t be able to stop running until we cross the Emer. We’ll soon be in unclaimed territory, but I don’t trust the soldiers to relent in their pursuit. Cayden whips his head around to see what I’ve done and almost collides with a tree. I reach over and pull on his hand to keep him from the path of collision. The dragons still roar and shoot fire behind us as we keep pushing forward.
I came for my dragons, just as I said I would. The promise I’ve uttered in the dark corners of my mind is finally fulfilled. Even through the throbbing pain and uncertainty, I smile against the icy wind. It’s a smile soaked in unfulfilled revenge, but it’s a start. The dragons are free, as they always should’ve been. I hope my father knows that no matter how many guards he puts around himself, he’ll never be safe from me. I invaded his home and took back what is mine. There’s no limit to what I can do.
ChapterForty-Eight
My bruised body has been pushed to the point of exhaustion, and the only thing propelling me forward is adrenalin. I’ve lost feeling in my toes, and I think I’ll need at least two entire pots of tea to get the frigid, burning sensation out of my throat. My knuckles split and shred as I battle against the elements. The rushing water of the Emer drifts our way in tandem with a series of howls echoing throughout the forest. Cayden and I cease running and glance at each other.
“They’re sending beasts since their soldiers lost us,” he pants, breaths clouding in front of his face. I bring my hands up to my lips to try to breathe warmth into them, but it’s no use. The cold is bitter and seeps into my very bones.
“I shouldn’t call on the dragons again, it’ll lead them right to us.”
I also don’t even know how to call on the dragons. As of right now, the beasts don’t know where we are. We’ve covered more ground than I thought we could in a few hours. The Emer isn’t a straight line that cuts through Imirath, and when we cross at this altitude, we’ll be in unclaimed god land, the Etril Forest. I look down at my bleeding leg and flash my eyes forward to Cayden’s bleeding arm. We have no bandages, and blood is the easiest thing for beasts to track. Neither of us brought our satchels into the castle; we have no supplies with us.
“There are no bridges up here anymore. They were burnt down several years ago,” Cayden says while stepping closer and rubbing his hands on my arms to offer me some friction. He’s implying we’ll have to get in the water…which is more than likely a death sentence.
“I’d rather die fighting on a whim than waiting for the choice to be made for me,” I state while looking into his eyes, knowing he feels the same way by the respect reflected in them. We’re soldiers. We never had the option of being coddled, and making hard decisions becomes easier when you’re forced to make them repeatedly. I move away from him and resume our run. It starts out as a jog, but we increase our pace with every new howl we hear. The water should wash our scents away and throw them off our tracks. We just need to make it to the river.
The rushing water grows, but no relief can be found when the howls are also growing. Each inhale feels like a sharp twist. My bruised ribs and the severe temperatures are a painful mixture. At least I know my ribs aren’t broken. I wouldn’t be able to run at this pace if they were. I suppress the memory of the hits and the hatred in the dragon’s eyes and just focus on getting to the Emer.
The trees begin to clear, and a wide river looms in front of us. My breath flies away from me like a startled bird when the spray of the frigid water dances across my cheeks. It should take us only five minutes to get across, maybe even less, but it’s going to feel so much longer than that. Snow has been melting off the peaks of the mountains since the temperature hasn’t been as cold as it can be up here, so the river is flowing at an aggressive pace. Sharp ice-covered rocks are dotted throughout the river, which will help break the current for us.
Two howls shatter the silence of the forest, and I know we must cross now or never.
“Hold onto my shoulders if we get to a point where you can’t reach the bottom, and do not let go of my hand,” Cayden commands while taking the first step into the water. He hisses through his teeth as his skin makes contact with the icy river. I choke on a whimper; my mind is overtaken by the freezing temperature, and it’s only up to my ankles. There’s a steep drop-off in front of us, and Cayden wastes no time jumping straight in.
“Fucking gods,” he curses, turning his back toward the current. The water is level with his chest, which means it’ll probably be up to my shoulders. He reaches forward and wraps his shaking hands around my waist to help me down.
