by Zoe Chant
Just barely in time, Braeden swerved, escaping a lance of shadow-tinged fire. It hit the rock behind his back instead, part of the mountainside crumbling.
Steele roared, the sound echoing from the jagged rock surrounding the valley. A second later, another jet of shadow-fire came his way—and this time, Braeden had anticipated it.
At the last moment, he flipped in the air. He dove beneath the stream of dark fire just in time to face Steele instead, who was now too close to twist out of the way.
Braeden opened his jaws. The living flame within him burned fierce and hot as he thought of what Steele had done to his mate—
And then the shadows inside his chest constricted around his heart.
For a moment, darkness swallowed him. It was difficult to see. He could feel nothing but the terrible, cold hand of the shadow inside him. It reached out for his heart, clenching around it, and Braeden bared his teeth in agony as he fought with all his might.
Then he tore free.
He'd missed his window. Steele was already past him, and now it was Braeden who was once more wide open to attack.
With darkness still hovering around the edges of his vision, Braeden barely escaped the next jet of dark fire. It came so close that he could feel the heat of it against his face.
The shadows within him twisted and turned once more.
Clenching his teeth, he fought against it. If he could just have one moment, one single moment with his full power at his command...
But the shadow seemed strangely alive within him. It was like fighting a battle on two fronts.
Steele was a powerful enemy at the best of times. Now, with Braeden having to use most of his power to hold the shadows within him at bay, there seemed to be no way that he could win.
Roaring a furious challenge, Braeden forced himself to turn, ignoring the blackness choking his heart.
If I lose, what will happen to my friends? What will happen to Alyx?
He couldn't lose. He had to keep her safe.
Even if it took his own life to accomplish that...
Chapter Nineteen: Alyx
Alyx had waited in the kitchen at first, but despite Ginny's attempts to distract her, she hadn't been able to bear it for long.
Next, she'd gone to the huge council chamber, walking back and forth—but that hadn't helped either.
In the end, she'd wandered the many tunnels of Sky Home, discovering storage rooms, guest rooms, and the occasional opening that led to natural balconies, giving her an incredible view of the mountain and the clouds below.
None of it had been able to stop the anxiety within her.
This is stupid. I've never felt so helpless before. He's my mate. I should be there with him right now.
Carefully, she made her way down a tiny, rocky path. It led from a small ledge at the side of the mountain to a natural balcony right along the jagged mountainside.
The sun was shining. The clouds beneath her gleamed white and gold. Everything was quiet and peaceful. She'd never breathed air that felt so crisp and clear before.
And she'd never felt so lonely and afraid in her entire life.
She wasn't a dragon shifter. She was just a human woman—good at her job, not easily intimidated, not afraid of anything.
But she couldn't take on dragons on her own. She knew that. If she'd gone with Braeden, she would've been a weakness Steele could use against him.
Still, it felt wrong. She wanted to be with him. She needed to be with him.
Taking a deep breath, she settled down on a rock. She looked up into the sky.
The sun was still shining down. Everything was quiet. It seemed strange that not too far away, Braeden was probably fighting for his life.
I should be there, she thought again, unable to shake the thought even though she knew it was ridiculous. Still, everything inside her yearned to be with her mate.
She drew up her knees and wrapped her arms around them, taking a deep breath as she focused on the sun warming her face.
Braeden was strong. Braeden would come back to her.
But what if he doesn't...?
Closing her eyes, she reached out for the mate bond. It shone golden and warm, just like the sunlight that surrounded her.
Tentatively, she reached out along the ribbon of gold.
She could feel Braeden. She could feel his love for her, his determination to keep her safe no matter what, that core of goodness inside him that wanted to protect the world from the evil Steele could do.
She felt herself smiling, sending her own love pulsing along the mate bond again. It stretched between them through the sky like a rainbow of golden light, and she followed it for as far as she could, beyond the mountaintops, beyond the clouds.
And then, all of a sudden, darkness appeared in front of her. At the other end of the chain of light, a dark cloud had appeared. A feeling of danger filled her at the eerie shadows, goosebumps rising all over her skin.
I've got nothing to fear. I'm perfectly safe here, she thought, releasing her hold on the mate bond to escape the cloud of swirling black.
And then she realized that she hadn't stopped. She was still moving forward, faster and faster.
The darkness blocked out all the golden light now. She could no longer feel the stone beneath her or taste the cold mountain air. Instead, she was racing straight towards the darkness, like a star getting sucked into a Black Hole.
Braeden, she cried out in sudden terror—but the shadows closed in around her, the golden light connecting them gone. All she could hear was her cry echoing around her, desperate and unheard.
Her heart was racing in her chest. The smell of ash and smoke filled her nose. For a moment, she was overwhelmed by the memories of the fire dragon lair.
No. We escaped. I'm safe in Sky Home. Whatever this is—I'm safe. I'm not really here.
She forced herself to open her eyes.
She was standing in a strange, barren landscape. The sky that stretched above her was dark, clouds of weirdly pulsing shadows moving rapidly across a black sky.
Stark mountains of black, volcanic rock surrounded her. As she looked around, she could see scorched ruins and blackened tree stumps.
Everything was dead. Burned.
Where am I?
A shadow moved across the ground, so quick that it was difficult to follow it with her eyes.
But a moment later, she realized just what it was.
Terrified, she raised her eyes—but there was no dragon in the sky above her. Nothing was moving or living in this place. Nothing to cast the shadow of a dragon in flight.
Again the shadow raced across the ground. She shuddered instinctively when it moved past her.
Was she just imagining it, or was it coming closer?
She swallowed thickly, thinking of circling vultures.
But this isn't real. It's just a shadow. And I'm not dead. I'm just dreaming.
Only it didn't feel like a dream. She felt an instinctive terror, her throat tight and her heart racing. Everything in her wanted to run.
She knew she was in terrible danger—and there was more.
She couldn't feel the golden light of the mate bond beneath this strange, dark sky. She could no longer feel the steady, reassuring pulse of Braeden’s love and warmth that she'd become used to.
But she could feel that he was in danger as well. She couldn't say how she knew—but right at this moment, while she was trapped in this place of shadows, Braeden was fighting for his life.
More than that, he was fighting for her life. For her, and for every other shifter and human in the world.
She took a deep breath.
I need to get out of here. I need to get back.
But how did you leave a place that felt almost like a dream, constantly shifting and twisting?
A nightmare. That's what this is.
Only she hadn't fallen asleep on the mountain. She'd reached out along the mate bond, trying to reassure herself that Braeden was okay.
<
br /> And then...
Then I fell into the shadow waiting at the other end. Damn!
She'd suddenly realized just what this place had to be. This was the darkness that had infected Braeden. The shadow inside his chest that even the chimera hadn’t known how to get rid of.
A part of Steele—or rather, a part of the darkness he served.
Alyx clenched her teeth and forced herself to get up and walk. Braeden wouldn't be able to get her out of this predicament. He was busy fighting for his own life.
Which meant that Steele had most probably lured her into this weird nightmare realm to use her as a weapon against him.
Again the shadow of a dragon swerved by her. Startled, Alyx jumped back. It hadn't touched her—but even so, it gave off a coldness that made her bones ache.
“Oh, no, you don't,” she said out loud.
Perhaps Braeden could hear her. Or perhaps all she'd managed was to distract him at a crucial point of his fight.
What happens to me when he dies and I'm still trapped in here...?
No good thinking about this now. She needed to get out. And she needed to get rid of the circling shadow dragon.
Again the shadow dragon came at her. This time, he seemed to gain substance. He was no longer just a shadow on the ground.
Instead, he seemed to have a body of swirling darkness. His eyes were the darkest black she'd ever seen, the color of black holes, of an abyss where no light had ever reached.
He looked nothing like Steele, who'd been shadow-flecked fire when she'd last seen him. This was a dragon of shadows and darkness—but still, something about him felt remarkably familiar.
Her heart pounding with terror, she felt her feet refuse to obey her.
She couldn't run. She couldn't escape.
But she couldn't die here, not with Braeden fighting for her so desperately.
She could feel Braeden now, distantly but clearly. He was still fighting, using all of his power just to stay alive.
One moment of distraction, and he'd be gone.
I won't be used, she thought. I won't be the weapon that kills him!
The shadow dragon was coming at her, its body more solid than ever before. In its open jaws she could see swirling darkness. If it closed around her, she'd be lost forever, torn apart by shadows.
She was more terrified than ever before in her life. How did you fight something that wasn't even real?
Wait. If it's not real, then neither am I. If we're inside Braeden's mind somehow, then I can be who the hell I want to be!
Braeden thought she was strong. He'd told her again and again how he'd admired her for not only surviving weeks as a fire dragon captive, but for escaping them all on her own.
I'm not a dragon or a knight—but I'm stronger than a cowardly piece of shadow!
She gritted her teeth and then reached inside herself for the strength that had carried her through a life of hard work to her dream job, surviving office politics, an asshole boss, and younger co-workers eager for her job. She reached for the desperate strength she never knew she had, which had allowed her to make it through the awful weeks when she'd been fed strange potions, fighting the fire that threatened to consume her.
She stretched out her hand. She stared the attacking shadow straight in the eye, refusing to flinch although she was only a split second from death now.
And then, as the darkness touched her skin, it finally broke free.
Light streamed out of her, an incredible power rushing through her that grew and grew until she felt as if she'd turned into fire. Her hair was flames; her blood was lava; her eyes shone with the light of the sun.
And in her hand, there was a sword of light, burning with the heat of an exploding star.
All of a sudden, she knew what to do.
Alyx took a step forward. She grasped the sword with both hands, meeting the dragon’s inhuman gaze as she thrust it towards him with all her strength.
The shadow dragon shrieked in rage as it realized what was happening—but it was too close. It couldn't retreat.
She slid her sword straight into the beast’s chest.
For a heartbeat, it seemed as if time itself had stopped as she stared fearlessly into the void in its eyes.
Then, with an inhuman screech, it vanished, like mist in the light of the morning sun.
All around her, the darkness was retreating. Shadows unraveled, receding so rapidly that by the time she'd finished turning around, she looked at a mountain valley filled by light and green grass.
The trees were no longer burned down, the rocks no longer scorched. The air smelled fresh and clean, and distantly, she could hear the sound of birds singing.
But there was one thing still lacking.
Braeden?
Chapter Twenty: Braeden
Trapped against a rocky outcrop by a wall of shadowy fire, Braeden desperately shook his head to get rid of the darkness covering the inside of his head like sticky cobwebs.
The shadow was no longer just a spot of darkness inside his chest. It felt as if it had spread tendrils of darkness through him, making it harder and harder to defend himself against Steele, no matter how desperately he fought.
Braeden gritted his teeth. He pulled on the flame that burned inside him, the element following his call and erupting into burning heat once more—although it wasn't enough to burn away the shadow within him.
But it didn't matter. If Steele won, all would be lost. Alyx would be lost.
If he couldn't defeat Steele, then he'd at least make sure that Steele died here with him.
Braeden took a deep, panting breath, the scent of smoke and charred grass filling his senses. The shadow inside him seemed to tighten around his lungs, but he still forced himself to breathe in as deeply as possible. In response, his fire burned brighter within him, red flames turning into white-hot heat.
Cloaked in darkness, Steele came right at him. His eyes were the black of a starless night, wisps of shadow trailing from his open mouth.
And then, a heartbeat before Braeden could release the fire that would consume them both, he felt it.
There, deep inside him, a golden flame had sprung up.
A moment later it bloomed into clear, hot fire, threaded through with the golden light of the mate bond. It cut right through the shadow that had wrapped so tightly around his lungs. Suddenly Braeden could breathe freely again, and the fire within him turned into a blazing inferno.
The shadow burned wherever the fire touched it. It burned as easily as paper, the glorious flames within him consuming Steele's taint as if his darkness had never touched Braeden.
And in its wake, there came a wave of love and strength.
Alyx!
Braeden didn't know how she'd managed to save him. He could feel her even now, the golden light of her love for him wrapping around him like armor.
And without the shadow, he was at last free to fight with all of his strength.
Inhaling deeply, he released a lance of fire that shot straight at Steele.
Steele was coming directly at the fire, as if he hadn't even entertained the notion that Braeden might have some fight left in him. Now he roared in rage, his eyes widening in shock.
At the last moment, Steele managed to beat his wings, rising above the cloud of fire, although it enveloped the tip of his tail.
A furious sound of pain escaped Steele as tendrils of smoke rose up from the burned scales. For a moment, his flight was strangely wobbly—but then he regained his balance and turned in the air.
Even with his full power returned to him, Braeden knew that Steele was still a formidable opponent.
Braeden didn't waste any time. As soon as he'd released his fire, he'd risen high into the air himself.
Steele was still slightly above him—but that just meant that his vulnerable belly was exposed to anyone beneath him.
Again Steele roared as he saw Braeden coming. Steele beat his wings to hold his position, inhaling deeply. Shadows ran all ov
er his body, growing ever darker. Shadow-flecked fire sizzled between his teeth.
Fearlessly, Braeden came straight at him, thinking of Alyx, who'd somehow defeated the shadow inside him.
He'd thought he'd die in this fight. He'd thought he'd have to sacrifice his own life to keep her safe.
But she'd shown him that there was another way. They could do this—together.
Steele flung his wings back. From his open jaws, a stream of darkness was hurled at Braeden.
Without flinching, Braeden kept racing straight at Steele—and at the darkness that had almost killed him before.
At the very last moment, he folded his wings against his body. He dropped like a stone, although his momentum kept carrying him forward. The torrent of darkness passed harmlessly above his head.
And then he was right beneath Steele and his unprotected belly.
Smoke rose from Braeden's nostrils. When he exhaled, his fire seared along Steele's entire underside. With a shriek of pain, Steele convulsed in the air—and then he began to drop.
Braeden couldn't think of anything but Alyx now. She'd unleashed the fire in his soul, the eternal flame that was life itself.
And now it burned brightly, hotter than ever before. Hot enough to melt metal. Hot enough to consume the planet, if he’d let it.
But there was only one thing such terrible power was meant for. It wasn’t to conquer the planet. It was to protect everything he loved.
Braeden opened his jaw, releasing the fire that had been burning inside him.
Steele's eyes widened as he realized what was happening. He roared in fury, even as he plummeted to the ground, unable to defend himself.
A heartbeat later, a ball of fire burning as hot as the sun enveloped Steele. For a moment, all Braeden could see was the bright orange-red of the inferno that devoured Steele.
And when the flames at last burned down, Steele was resting on the ground, unmoving.
The shadows that had covered Steele’s body were gone. There were no tendrils of darkness moving over his scales.
Instead, the formerly red scales had turned to the dull gray of ash.
