Chapter no 13
There is nothing quite as humbling, or as awe-inspiring, as witnessing Threshing…for those who live through it anyway. —Colonel Kaori’s Field Guide to Dragonkind CHAPTER THIRTEEN October first is always Threshing. Monday, Wednesday, or Sunday, it doesn’t matter where it falls on any given year. On the first of October, the first-year cadets of the […]
Chapter no 12
Presentation Day is unlike any other. The air is ripe with possibilities, and possibly the stench of sulfur from a dragon who has been offended. Never look a red in the eye. Never back down from a green. If you show trepidation to a brown…well, just don’t. —Colonel Kaori’s Field Guide to Dragonkind CHAPTER TWELVE […]
Chapter no 11
It is a grave offense against Malek to keep the belongings of a dead loved one. They belong in the beyond with the god of death and the departed. In the absence of a proper temple, any fire will do. He who does not burn for Malek will be burned by Malek. —Major Rorilee’s Guide […]
Chapter no 66
CHAPTER SIXTY-SIX XADEN E very note of Sgaeyl’s terror plays down my spine as I hang suspended mere feet above the battlefield, my muscles frozen, my power locked uselessly inside of me. Even if he let me go, I’m not sure I’d have enough strength left to wield. He wore me down for fucking fun. […]
Chapter no 65
CHAPTER SIXTY-FIVE T hud. Thud. The sound echoes down the ward chamber. “Wyvern bodies,” Andarna tells me, pivoting to peek her head through the doorway. “Please forgive me.” Her golden eyes blink. Forgive her? “She made a choice,” I whisper, but the tears falling down my cheeks aren’t quite as resigned, nor are the sobs […]
Chapter no 64
CHAPTER SIXTY-FOUR “W hat do you mean, they’re waiting for you?” I ask once we’re in front of Codagh, facing an open battlefield littered with the corpses of wyvern and dragons alike. A pulsing ache of dread erupts in my chest. There’s already been so much death, and we haven’t yet faced the worst of […]
Chapter no 63
CHAPTER SIXTY-THREE T he dark wielder turns, but he isn’t fast enough. Andarna lands directly in front of him, then opens her mouth and breathes fire down upon him, roasting the dark wielder before she snaps her jaws down and rips his head straight off his body. I fall into the melting slush at the […]
Chapter no 62
CHAPTER SIXTY-TWO N o. No. No. This is too familiar. Losing Liam was… I can’t lose Rhi. I just can’t. She surges forward as the wyvern screams, our rate of descent so fast that blood appears to fall upward. I yank on my belt again, but the leather is swollen with rain, wedged tight, and […]
Chapter no 61
CHAPTER SIXTY-ONE D awn is still an hour away as the riders in our squad stand on the ridgeline above the main campus of Basgiath, our dragons lined up behind us. The horizon holds a vague outline, the promise of light, but it winks in and out of my vision as the skyline shifts, the […]
Chapter no 60
CHAPTER SIXTY X aden drops the shadows, and we both turn at the same time to survey the damage. My heart seizes, and I reach for Xaden’s hand reflexively. The wardstone lies in two pieces on the ground, and there isn’t a flame in sight. Holy Dunne, Navarre is defenseless. There’s no seeing over Baide’s […]