Chapter 34

DAELLA

The dragon took off through the trees. Her extraordinary body shoved through the canopy and exploded out the other side in a whirlwind of sticks and leaves. The dark, thunderous sky enveloped us.

I held on, gritting my teeth against the ferocity of the wind. Aska spun to the left while keeping low above the forest. When her claws skimmed the canopy, she swooped higher, closer to the pregnant clouds. I realized the break in rain had been just that—a break—and she was taking me away from danger before the torrent began anew.

True fear rattled inside me when I risked a glance below. I caught glimpses of the ground through the trees. It was so very far away. One wrong move, and I’d be dead from the fall. Still, the exhilarating magic rushed through me and burned my fear away. I lifted my eyes and gazed forward at the sky opening up before me.

I could see for miles. The verdant forest rolled toward the gentle foothills clustered at the base of the jagged mountain range, backlit by the setting sun. Shades of gold and orange drenched the lands like strands of fire. There were no dark clouds near the mountains, no storm. Just three small dragons soaring through the humid skies.

A little quiver of unease went through me at the sight of them. Aska was clearly the gentler of the two I’d met so far, and she had sought me out likely because she remembered the time I’d offered her some treats. The others would not have that same connection to me, and after Reykur’s attack on Wyndale, I couldn’t be certain what I’d face.

Still, Aska carried on, soaring close to the others. The dragons bellowed and fell into formation behind her. I cast a glance over my shoulder, the wind biting my cheeks. Up close, they were as majestic as I’d remembered. Beautiful and fierce and strong, their scales glinting with unleashed fire.

When we neared the base of Mount Forge, Aska landed gently on a rocky ledge and strode inside the cave where Rivelin had first shown them to me. It was dimly lit inside, and the stench of dragons invaded all my senses and weighed on my exhausted, hungry body. Before I could make sense of it, my eyes grew heavy, and I sagged forward. I desperately tried to cling to consciousness, but the magic of this place pulled me under.

* * *

Iawoke with a warm, leathery body enveloping mine. Jolting upright, I blinked at where the dragon’s sleeping form curled around me, like a cat protecting its young. Her breathing was slow and even, though her nostrils flared, as if scenting me. I noticed her skin, like mine, was covered in red welts. Guilt flashed through me. She was only hurt because of me.

I looked around the cave. Daylight splashed in from the world outside and revealed the three other dragons sleeping soundly all around me, their scaly bellies pointed up at the stone ceiling. Yesterday—or however long it had been—they’d seemed so impossibly large. But now, in the still quiet, it was clear they were nothing but youngsters. Something in my heart warmed at the sight of them, and magic crackled in my blood.

“Thank you,” I whispered to Aska. She cracked one eye, let out a little huff, and went back to sleep.

I slowly extracted myself from my makeshift bed and walked to the cave entrance. A flock of starlings spun through the air in an elaborate dance, twisting this way and that. The sun beamed down on the rolling hills, and the heady warmth of summer settled into me. My clothes were dry now, but a few painful welts were left behind by the downpour. I’d survived, though.

And now I had to decide what to do next.

“Daella!” a familiar voice called out from somewhere nearby.

Rivelin.

I sucked in a breath and darted inside the cave. Shit. I should have known he’d search here. Had he spotted me? Where could I hide? I cast my glance toward the slumbering dragons. He’d mentioned before he couldn’t get near them. Quickly, I rushed across the cave floor to duck out of sight behind Aska.

But he was too fast. He was there at the entrance of the cave less than a heartbeat later.

“Daella,” he said.

I froze, only inches from Aska. She hadn’t moved, but I could tell by her shallow breathing that she was fully awake now. Would she step in if he tried to drag me away? And did I even want her to? If she tried to protect me, she might burn him alive.

And even after everything, the thought of that felt like a knife through my heart.

Slowly, I turned to face him. His breathing was ragged and his hair was mussed, but he’d never looked more handsome. His rugged form was backlit by the brilliant morning sun, and the sleeves of his black tunic were rolled up to his elbows to reveal his well-built forearms. Those glowing yellow eyes pierced through me, and for a moment, I almost forgot to breathe.

“Daella,” he murmured again. “You’re all right.”

I blinked and reality rushed in around me once more. Shaking my head, I took a step closer to the dragon. “Sorry to disappoint.”

Pain flashed across his stoic face. “This isn’t what you think it is. I’m here because I made a mistake.”

I paused with my boot half a step further. “What do you mean?”

“I was wrong. We were both wrong.” He entered the cave, his hands spread wide on either side of him. “It was Viggo. He set us both up, trying to knock me out of the Midsummer Games. Trying to turn us against each other. And it worked, because I am a fool who can’t see the truth even when it’s staring me right in the face.”

My heart rattled. “This could be some kind of trick, another lie. You can’t come any closer because of the dragons, which means you need me to walk out of here willingly. It’s the only way you can truly take me as your prisoner.” Like Isveig.

“No,” he said roughly, moving a step closer. “I would never do that to you, even if I thought you were behind the attack. I didn’t even search for you in the woods with the others. I let you go. The only reason I’m here now is because I realized I was wrong. I know you can never forgive me. I don’t expect you to. But I wanted to come and tell you it’s safe now for you to leave. As of today, the Elding has moved west. A ship will be in the harbor now. You can return to the mainland.” He took a step further. “With this. I dove into the sea and got it back.”

Rivelin extracted something from his belt, and my breath caught in my throat. My mother’s dagger. The orcish words seemed to glow beneath the light of the sun slanting into the cave.

Ris upp ur oskunni.

Rise from the Ashes.

I searched his face, scarcely daring to believe my own eyes. “I don’t understand. Wasn’t this all some kind of game? You sabotaged the other contestants and then put the blame on me in front of everyone.”

“I did not, Daella. I truly believed…” He closed his eyes. “I truly believed you’d done it all.”

“But,” I whispered, “who else could control a dragon? You’re the only one with any sort of relationship with them.”

“It’s a long story, and I can explain on the way. But we don’t have much time if you want to reach the ship before it departs.”

I swallowed thickly. “I want to believe you, Rivelin. I can’t explain how much. But how can I be certain you don’t—”

He crossed the cave in two quick strides, pressed the dagger into my hands, and took my face in his strong, calloused palms. He winced as the dragons’ heat seared him, but he leaned in and brushed my lips with his. Steam hissed and swirled, engulfing us both. I gripped his shirt, desperate to give in to the feel of him, but his skin was so hot—too hot.

With a gasp, I shoved him across the cave. He stumbled away from me, back toward the open air. A fresh burn sizzled on his cheek from where he’d come too close to the dragons.

“What in fate’s name do you think you’re doing!” I shouted at him. “You could have gotten yourself killed.”

“I would do anything to prove myself to you, Daella. I’ll heal from this, I’ll survive. But you…if I had not come here instead of going to Midsummer, you might not. You must trust me and leave this place while you still have time.”

“You fool,” I whispered as an unrelenting wave of emotion burned through me. “You wonderful, ridiculous fool. You—wait. What are you talking about? Aren’t you still competing in the Games?”

“No, I came here instead. For you.” He scanned my face. “Despite what you believe, everything between us was real, and now I’m here to prove it to you.”

I strode toward him, my heart clenching. “You have to go back to Wyndale. You have to win the Games and ask the island to protect the folk of the Isles from Isveig.”

“It’s too late. The ceremony is happening now. I wouldn’t make it back in time, and I have nothing to offer up even if I did. No one does. Everyone has either quit or been ousted, including Viggo, for what he did. Now let’s get you going. You have so little time.”

I searched his face. “There’s more to this than you’re saying.”

For a moment, he didn’t speak. And then he sighed, running his fingers through his long, silver strands. “If you want to be free of Isveig, you need to return to Fafnir and find a book he stole from the orcs. It has instructions in there that can bind you to a dragon with magic that will destroy the ice shard in your body. It’s the only way you’ll be free of him.”

All the blood drained from my face, and I took a slow, stumbling step away from him. “You mean become a Draugr.”

He held up a hand. “Before you argue, let me explain. Being a Draugr is not the terrible fate we’ve always believed, as long as the bond between a dragon and its rider is done right. Mabel came to see me and told me everything she remembers from her time with the orcs. You can make that bond. You, Daella, as long as the dragon chooses you willingly. It’s only when others—elves, dwarves, humans—force dragons to bond with them that the magic turns volatile. And when you do this, the magic will free you from Isveig.”

My heart pounded. “Rivelin, I—”

“I know it’s hard to imagine becoming the thing you’ve hated and hunted all these years, but you won’t be like them, Daella. When I look into your eyes, I know there’s no chance you could turn into that kind of creature. Go to Fafnir. Find the book. And then come back to me, if you still want me the same way I want you.”

I couldn’t believe I was even considering this, but…I glanced at Aska and my chest warmed. Doing this would mean becoming the thing I’d hated for as long as I could remember. It would mean embracing the darkness I’d fought so hard against. But what I’d hated and feared, it hadn’t been the whole truth. The full portrait had been smudged.

Somehow, deep down, I knew there was truth in Rivelin’s words. But that did not mean his wild plan was the answer to all our issues. How could I possibly find this hidden book? And then how could I ever get away from Isveig again? He would never let me leave.

“What if I fail?” I whispered.

“You won’t.”

I inhaled, trying to memorize the scent of his leather, his smoke, his steel. My heart ached at the idea of leaving him, especially now when we’d only just found our way back to each other. The six weeks had felt like years, like I’d known him all my life. It was not nearly long enough.

Forever wouldn’t even be long enough.

And now I would return to Isveig empty-handed. It was only a matter of time before he sent someone else to investigate the Isles, no matter what I told him. He would tear this land to shreds.

I couldn’t leave these people to that fate.

I pressed my lips together, then asked, “Did you withdraw from the Midsummer Games?”

“What?”

“You’re not there competing now, but did you formally withdraw?”

“No, but it doesn’t matter.” He tugged me closer, our hips locking together. “I may be fast, but I’m not fast enough for that. Besides, I need to take you to the harbor. You don’t know where it is.”

“I have an idea.” I smiled. “And you’re not going to like it.”