Chapter Thirty-One Myla #2
My arms pump at my sides, the roar at my back pushing me faster while my boots pound against the uneven ground as I sprint towards the forest. I don’t need to see to know that the green dragon’s attention is locked on me.
I can feel it on my skin, a primal unease coating me.
Faster. My thighs burn and my throat goes raw from the air that rushes past it, death lurking a half step behind me and gaining speed.
Pain flares at my ribs from running, just as I realize the ground isn’t vibrating with the steps of the dragon chasing me.
The moment the thought forms in my mind, I drop to the ground, my arms covering my head as an immense heat more powerful than any sun blasts above me.
I scream into the dirt, sure that this is the end.
A rush of cold night air blankets my skin as the dragon fire disappears, but any relief I feel is temporary when I hear what can only be described as a night-shattering howl.
Lifting my head, I ensure I truly am alive and not melted into my leathers before pushing up onto all fours, craning my neck to look back at the two dragons.
My eyes widen as I watch the Hiravar advance on Sunis, pushing her back towards the cave.
Where he can trap her. I’m up and running towards the chaos again before I can think it through.
Sliding my blades from their sheaths at my ribs, I push myself faster, my ankles nearly twisting as I run over sticks and rocks.
The Hiravar swings his tail and strikes Sunis, the dark liquid staining her front making a scream rip from my throat.
He lunges again, sharp teeth closing around her neck and making her roar in pain. She tries to shake him off, but the dragon holds firm, lifting a front leg and dragging his claws over her chest. Fuck, he’s going to kill her.
I reach his back foot, jamming my dagger between his round scales.
Even though the blade is much too small to cause significant damage, it draws the dragon’s attention to me, his head snapping back towards me as he releases Sunis.
Those vertical pupils flare wide when he opens his mouth to reveal a flame of swirling orange and yellow and red.
I pull the dagger out, sweat sliding into my eyes as I jam it again into a different spot, hoping Sunis takes advantage of the distraction to fly away.
The green dragon fills the entirety of my vision, so when I hear wings beating, I assume it’s Sunis taking to the sky.
But I’m wrong. I hear her before I see her, a bone-rattling roar filling the air before the ground shakes from the impact of her landing.
Bali wastes no time charging forward, and I’m forced to abandon my dagger when the Hiravar moves to defend himself from her.
Rolling to my side, I pop up to the left of Bali, bolting to Sunis as I watch her mother sink her teeth into the attacking dragon’s neck, inducing a blood-curdling whine.
He swings his tail again, aiming directly for Bali’s flared wing.
But she adjusts effortlessly, keeping her hold on his neck as she snaps her wing in and tips her body to the side.
The three spikes scrape against her scales, missing her softer underbelly.
She growls around the blood of the now destroyed scales on her opponent’s neck as he tries desperately to free himself.
Standing in front of Sunis, I dare a closer look at the wound on her chest. The Hiravar’s claws shredded her skin, but the gash doesn’t appear too deep, the blood leaking from it already beginning to slow. My stomach settles as I release a breath. My dragon won’t be dying today.
The green dragon still struggles against Bali’s hold on his neck, and it occurs to me then that if she wanted him dead, this would have been over the moment she landed to defend her offspring.
No, she is toying with him. He may have been testing his fate against Sunis confidently, but against Bali?
All he’s done is anger a stronger power.
Bali lifts onto her hind legs with a growl that sounds almost frustrated, the weight of the dragon in her jaw inconsequential before she slams him onto the ground, the weight of her body crashing into his side.
The sound he releases is like nothing I’ve heard one of the beasts make before, and the silence that follows is even more deafening.
Taking a step forward, I see Bali’s eyes snap to mine as she finally releases the green dragon, leaving him injured but alive.
Fury burns in her gaze as she prowls towards me, but I keep my weary body still.
Moving to stand over me, Sunis makes a series of deep chittering sounds while her mother approaches.
Several tense seconds pass, and Sunis bumps her snout against her mother’s in some unspoken conversation.
Whatever she is trying to communicate makes Bali relent with a flash of her teeth aimed at me before she stalks into the cave.
The tension in my jaw releases, only to travel up to my temples, throbbing to the beat of my quick pulse.
Sunis lowers her head when I step out from underneath her, tilting it to the side like she did when nudging at her mother.
One serpent-like eye stares at me, and though I can’t explain why, I lift my hand and lay it against the side of her face. Both of our eyes close at the contact.
Navin described the bond as a slow build of power, like watching the sun rise, until it suddenly snapped into place.
He said each pairing has a different look, feel, and color to their bond, its uniqueness dependent on the fae and dragon themselves.
Even with my eyes closed, I sense Sunis settling down in front of me.
My heart begins to pound for a different reason, excitement amplifying each beat as I search my mind for that bond.
A pathway to Sunis that will forever be mine and mine alone.
Each inhale draws her scent towards me—fire and brimstone and ash.
I take another step closer, the heat of her mouth so powerful that new sweat layers over the old behind my neck.
A line forms between my brows as I search the darkness of my mind, empty hands grasping at nothing over and over and over again.
Sunis makes that chittering noise again, and I say her name under my breath to calm her as I peer deeper into my mind.
There! A flicker in the dark, like a wayward star come to life.
I stretch my mind towards it, watching as its size grows and morphs, flashing from white to gray and back again before taking on a slightly pink hue.
As if recognizing I am there, the movement halts, the pink light suspended and frozen in time.
My stomach lurches, and my hand on Sunis trembles, pressure building behind my eyes as desperation washes over me. Finally. Fucking finally, it’s—
Sunis pulls away from my touch, and the connection between us severs in an instant.