Page 364 of Elemental Becoming

One by one, they descend from the sky in sweeping arcs. Massive wings cleave through the air. The ground shakes beneath us with each landing, the earth rumbling beneath clawed feet striking stone and soil.

I feel Calryx before I see her. Her presence collides into mine through the bond, fierce and full of fire.

She lands in front of me, wings flaring wide, talons sinking into the earth. Smoke curls from her nostrils, flames dancing at the edges of her breath. Her scales shimmer with an opalescent sheen, catching the light in shifting hues of silver, violet, and pale gold.

Others land beside her. Obsidian scales. Bronze. Copper. Deep blues and greens. Twenty-one dragons now stand before us.

I glance toward Thane. His eyes remain fixed on the horizon, but I feel the change in him all the same. It’s time.

The dragons lower their necks in unison, heads bowing low, wings half-spread like drawn blades.

Around me, riders break into motion, sprinting toward their dragons, gripping saddles, swinging into place with practiced ease. Leather creaks. Metal flashes. The field comes alive with purpose.

I’m just about to move when a hand closes around my arm. Firm. Urgent.

I turn, and Thane pulls me back to him. He doesn’t say a word. He just kisses me. Hard. His mouth finds mine with a desperation that steals the breath from my lungs. Fear. Love. Everything he can’t bring himself to say aloud.

His hand cups my face, holding me there for one precious moment longer. When he pulls back, his breathing is uneven.

“Please,” he says quietly. “Stay close to me.”

I nod, unable to trust my voice.

Then we run.

BATTLE OF ATTRITION

FIFTY-ONE

Courage is not the absence of fear. Rather, it is born from it. Fear has a way of revealing the strength hidden within us, or the weakness. It can call forth acts of bravery we might never have known we possessed. Some of the greatest courage a soul can muster rises only because of fear.

—VALEN’S JOURNAL

AMARA

The cold air tears past me as my boots strike the packed earth.

Calryx is waiting.

Massive. Still. Coiled with purpose.

Her head is lowered, wings half-spread, emerald eyes fixed on me like a beacon in the dark.

I leap, catching the harness and hauling myself into the saddle. The moment I settle, the magical locks snap into place, spell-sealed clasps clicking against the leather. I feel the magics settle along my legs and across my back, securing me in place.

Around the field, riders do the same. Buckles fasten. Leather tightens. Dragons rumble low in their chests. One by one, dragons shift beneath us, wings rustling, talons digging into the earth.

The air crackles with tension.

Across the line, Thane raises his hand. His silhouette stands stark against the cloudless sky, Xaroth towering behind him, obsidian scales gleaming and wings stretched wide.

His signal is crisp. Controlled.

Take flight.

Calryx launches.

The ground vanishes beneath us. Her wings drive hard against the air as she surges upward. I press into the saddle while the wind roars past, my pulse racing as I fix my gaze on the horizon.