Page 24 of Dragon Throne: Part One

8

“To your Dragons!” Kingston ordered just as another roar shook the mountain, inciting screams from our people in the hidden city.

Without hesitation, the Elevated Warriors ran towards the door, and Evie turned to Willow, handing her the letter. “Guard this for me.”

“Wait!” Willow yelled after her, but her plea went unanswered.

“You and Evanna should stay here,” Kingston urged me and Evie at the same time.

“No!” I replied for both of us, but Evie had already decided. She was running out the door without us.

With a grunt, his attention flew to Fletcher.

“Follow the course. Tell everyone to grab their valuables and wait for our signal in the training fields in case they need to escape. Go!” Kingston ordered Finn, Islay, Hannah, and Fletcher, who nodded, running out the opposite doors—towards the market. His voice softened when he focused on Willow. “Go to your quarters and do the same. Be ready, I’ll come for you if needed.”

“Please be careful,” Willow begged him, her eyes screaming she didn’t want to leave his side, but she turned around, rushing to the hall with Harrison by her side to protect her.

With Willow safe, Kingston and I rushed after Evanna and the others.

“Stop!” I shouted the second we came out to the landing pad. Tharion was already flying towards the crack in the mountain to confront Azazel… without me.

A roar of his own reverberated in the huge cave, causing our steps to falter too.

“Impulsive Dragon!”I hissed into his mind and cursed under my breath. My freaking soulmate had left me. WTF? Turning, I watched Kingston jump onto Spartan, while Harper, Arlo, Penelope, and Elijah, all mounted their rides and flew outside one by one.

Athina’s wing suddenly slapped the ground next to me. “Ride with me!” Asher shouted from her neck, but I swiftly shook my head.

“I’ll meet you out there. Go!”

His brows furrowed in concern, but my friend and commander launched into the sky, flipping in the air as Athina took him through the crack.

“Venom! I need you.”

The next moment, the huge, bright chartreuse Dragon swooped down from the honeycombs, sending the small rocks and dirt in the terrain to blow all over from his harsh landing.

I had a lot of work to do with him.

His nearly white eyes connected with mine a second before he stood on his hindlegs, rearing back like a horse would, and his jaws opened wide to show threads of lightning crackling inside his throat.

“Calm down!” I shouted, lifting my hands as I called him to me. “I need your help, but you have to calm down. You cannot attack anyone here.”

My heart thundered in my chest when his head shook, fighting my plea to relent. I knew how much of a risk it was to take a wild Dragon with me outside, when I had only ever ridden him once—the day I brought him here—but I had no other option. He was used to me and my presence in his cave by now though, so that would have to be enough.

“I’m going to mount you like the day we met, okay? Lower your wing.”

The images from that day flourished in my mind’s eye, and I sent them to him, reminding him of how we had connected. Venom’s double tongues flickered out as he lowered, and he tilted his head for me to place my hand on his forehead. The lightning energy rushed through every inch of me once we connected, filling me with adrenaline and strength.

His wing finally touched the ground, and I jumped on it without hesitation, running up the bony appendage that would have been his arm. My body settled into the natural saddle formed by the scales on his neck, and I clung to Venom while he rose to his full height, lunging into the air.

When I finally reached the others, the sight brought both awe and shock to my system. The entire Sky Legion, like the one my dad had led, hovered in the sky, forming a barricade between the mountains that were our refuge and Azazel. From where I flew towards them, I couldn’t see Kingston, Evie, or even the other Elevated Warriors that weresky riders, but I knew they were at the forefront.

It was the most beautiful and terrifying thing I ever saw. Nearly fifty of our Dragons flew together to protect our people, including Evie’s, Kingston’s, and the others’—a massive wall of protection and unity. Even then, Azazel almost dwarfed them all as he hovered on the other side, his four heads lifting and lowering in fury, resembling the movements of a snake.

The Warlock King’s imposing figure stood on his back.

Sunlight glinted off the demon mask on his head and the armor sculpting his torso. His black cloak and skirts billowed behind him with the wind while he gripped the staff in one hand, holding it like a conqueror would a planted flag. The green glow emanating from the crystal on his staff, was matched by the eye slits of his demon mask, and Azazel’s eyes.

A shiver ran down my spine. Raithian’s magic was in full power, and judging by his armor, he hadn’t come to chat.

---