“Any chance you can use that shadow trick on us, too?” she asked hopefully.Fordham said nothing, and it was answer enough.When they planned this rescue mission, Fordham had finally confided in her about his powers. That they allowed him to bend the darkness between places. It was an incredibly dangerous and difficult ability. It ran in his family, but only his father was able to do it with any regularity and not wipe himself out completely. The magic required was so enormous that Fordham hadn’t even been sure he would be able to do it today, but they’d both agreed it was worth the risk.“Great,” she muttered. “Twelve against two.”“I’ll take those odds,” Fordham said.Basem chuckled his rattling laugh and then produced a small amber orb out of his pocket. It was bigger than the thing she’d shattered in the alley the first time they’d met. Suddenly that meeting made so much more sense. He’d held her long enough with the stone, but it hadn’t been strong enough that night. She doubted

I didn’t plan to run forever,” she taunted right back.Basem expected her to retaliate with air. That had been her main element at the last fight, and so she gave him exactly what he’d expected. She stepped forward and sliced her hand down, the wind listening to her every move as it cut through his chest. He avoided the next one and the next before kicking at the earth under his feet. It ricocheted throughout the arena, and the rock under her own feet erupted upward. She was propelled forward. But instead of being thrown off-balance with the force, she used it to vault upward, do a somersault midair, and then come back at him with an arc of flames.Basem barely moved enough to bring up a shield of water to dispel the flames into steam. Kerrigan landed as gracefully as a cat on her feet on the other side of the ring.“New tricks,” Basem growled as he forced the water to do his bidding.Maya dispelled it with ease, taking the water he’d thrown at her and bringing it into her magic. He d

How is Ever doing?” she asked.Valia shook her head. “He’s frightened, but Mistress Moran has taken him under her wing. She seems besotted with the child.”Maya nodded. “Good. She’s like that with all the littlings.”“So, who do you think is going to win?”“I really have no idea.”“Fordham, of course,” Valia said.But Maya hadn’t had a vision again. She didn’t know who was going to win or if Fordham would be in danger. She was walking into this task blind. And it was the most important. The five people who succeeded would get one of the five dragons and be inducted into the Society. A dream come true.“I hope so.”They stepped into the competitors’ box in the arena. The last eight competitors stood in clusters around the room. Fordham stood alone with his arms crossed over his broad chest. Aurora laughed with Roake, her blonde hair fluttering in the faint breeze. Noda stood with Posana and Chelcie, speaking furtively. Darrid glared at Fordham. Taiga seemed to be trying to get his atte

He came to his feet. “Well, that’s lucky.”She swallowed back the lump in her throat. Marc here to save us after all.”“We should probably set out at dawn,” Fordham said. “Together, we can get out of here.”“All right, princeling,” she said with a half-smile. “But first, we’re going to need some pinecones.”Fordham didn’t ask, just helped her cover a few pinecones in sap, and then she cracked the two biggest sticks she’d found on a sharp piece of rock, placing the sap-covered pinecones inside and dipping them in the flames.He looked at her, impressed. “Torches. How did you know how to do that?”“House of Dragons teaches us more than just etiquette,” she said with a grin. She brushed mud off his brow and laughed. “You look ridiculous.”“I ate poisonous berries,” he reminded her.And then they both laughed.The weight and fear of the night before had dissipated at dawn. They had gotten through a lot together this last month. This was one more adventure.Together, they tracked through t

Maya came to, gasping for breath. She put her hands on her knees and tried to suck in enough life to leave that horrible nightmare behind. She knew that it was the faerie illusion that she had walked into. That it was designed to warp reality and pull out her deepest, darkest fear. She had just lived it—marrying Ashby March and living a life where no one ever saw her for who she truly was. She had come out on the other side of it, had risen above the adversity, but it had felt so very real.Her body trembled with exhaustion from the illusion, but she was no longer helpless. Her magic flared bright and bursting within her, and all of her injuries had been healed. She straightened to her full height and found herself before a gaping audience. The cave was large enough to hold the five dragons—Avirix, Netta, Tieran, Luxor, and Evien—as well as their five Dragon Blessed handlers. Standing before them were the four competitors who had made it this far. Aurora stood with wide eyes, farther