Page 57 of Rhapsody of Ruin
Her grip did not loosen. “So did I.”
The silence that followed was heavier than any battlefield. My dragon blood roared with instinct, protect, fight, burn, but there was nothing to strike. Only a sky that could fail at any moment.
When I finally looked at her, her face was pale, lips pressed thin. But her eyes held resolve.
“We cannot show fear in court,” she said.
“No.” I forced my voice steady. “We proceed anyway.”
Before I could say more, wings beat against the dawn.
I turned sharply, scanning the sky until I caught the glint of bronze against the mist. A dragon approached, smaller than mine, banking low toward the ledge. Relief tangled with dread. Only one would come here.
Torian.
He landed on a lower shelf, talons scraping stone, and shifted in a ripple of heat and light. His cloak snapped around him as he climbed, his face grim.
“Brother,” he greeted, then nodded curtly to Elowyn. “Princess.”
“What news?” I demanded, though I already knew it would not be good.
“Cindralith’s stores are nearly bare,” he said bluntly. “The last convoy from Grenoble was waylaid. Bandits, they claim, though some whisper Fae involvement.” His gaze cut to Elowyn, sharp, suspicious. She bore it without flinching.
“And Kylian?” I asked.
Torian’s jaw clenched. “He’s withdrawn. Refuses council. Locks himself in Emberhold. The Ashenblades grow restless, and the minor houses begin to hoard openly. Without intervention, the kingdom will turn on itself within the month.”
A curse tore from my lips. Kylian, damn him. He had always been reckless, but to abandon our people now,
I felt Elowyn’s eyes on me. Cool, assessing. “Then the united ask cannot wait. If you delay, both kingdoms suffer.”
I turned back to Torian. “You heard her. We proceed.”
Torian frowned. “With the Shroud trembling? With Kylian adrift?”
“Yes.” My voice cut like steel. “We can’t falter. If we do, the court will devour us both.”
Elowyn inclined her head, mask of serenity slipping back into place. “Tonight, we return to the archives. The hymn. The gloss. More proof. But today, we demand.”
Torian exhaled sharply, but nodded. He knew as well as I that there was no other path.
We stood there, the three of us, bound not by trust but by necessity. The wind whipped hard across the ledge, tugging Elowyn’s cloak tight against her frame. My eyes betrayed me, flicking lower before I forced them back to the horizon.
“Time to return,” I said.
She met my gaze. “Together.”
“Together.”
I shifted, the dragon ripping free in heat and bone. Elowyn climbed into my arms without hesitation now, fitting against me as though she belonged there. My wings unfurled, snapping wide, catching the thin dawn.
We soared.
The wind cut like knives, but her body pressed into mine kept me steady. The city sprawled below, rooftops silver-threaded, alleys stirring with early movement. The Shroud loomed above, smoothed once more, but I could still see the crack, etched into my memory like a scar.
We circled wide, descending toward Shadowspire. The palace rose like a blade from the mist, its spires piercing the Shroud as if daring it to fail.
I landed on the terrace, lowering her with care. For an instant, she lingered, her hand brushing my jaw, her eyes searching mine.
