Page 94 of Bride of the Black Dragon
I look over and see a sleek black body below me, vast wings catching the wind, claws gleaming like obsidian. A black dragon flies beside me—Xaren’s Drake.
But he’s not whole—not anymore. His wings are tattered and his body is weak. I can see the iron collar still chained around his neck, dragging him down like an anchor trying to sink him.
He’s dying.
“Elaina…” His voice echoes in my mind. Rough and weary. “You must set her free…”
“Who?” I call back. “How?”
The clouds part ahead, and I see a second dragon.
She is beautiful.
Wings of pearl and silver stretch wide against the sky. Her body glows with soft moonlight. Her eyes—my eyes—are filled with pain and power.
“She is in you,” the black Drake whispers. “She always has been. She is your birthright… your power. Let her rise. Let her fly.”
“But how?” I cry. “How do I let her out?”
“Feel deep inside yourself,” he tells me. “You’ll find a way once you find her.”
51
ELAINA
A loud banging shatters the dream.
I jerk awake, my heart hammering. The cell door crashes open, and two guards march in with hard eyes and rough hands.
“Time to die, Princess,” one says, laughing coarsely, as though he’s made a funny joke.
I try to scramble away, my breath catching in fear.
“Wait—please, just wait—” I beg, but they’re not having it.
One grabs me, twisting my arms behind me and locking the iron cuffs in place. Inside, my mind is in turmoil.
The dream—it’s already slipping away.
The silver and white dragon. My dragon.
I have a dragon?
I try to hold onto the image, the voice, the feeling of flying, but it’s vanishing like smoke through my fingers.
They drag me into the corridor. I stumble, feet scraping on rough stone.
Above us, torches flicker. Around us, silence reigns. Probably everyone is already gathered in the square to watch my execution.
I don’t cry—I still can’t. But inside me, something stirs.
Not a tear…not a scream. No, it’s a flicker of flame.
It’s tiny and distant…but real.
Let her rise…
Let her fly…
