“Look out for each other,” I mumbled.
For once Rose didn’t scowl or make any remark.
“We will,” she said.
“See you on the other side,” Drystan said, heading toward Athebyne without any exchanged sentiments.
Nyte finished talking privately to Elliot, clapping a hand on his shoulder, and I almost thought they would give in to an embrace. It dropped sorrow in me to think of their shared losses; they hadn’t had the time to truly grieve.
Nadir had provided horses, which Davina and Lilith mounted. Zath and Rose would go by foot since we were already in Vesitire.
“We’ll meet back here in two weeks tops, even if we don’t cover all the temples,” I reminded everyone.
They nodded, and watching them leave strained the many strings attached to my heart for each of them. Nyte tried to soothe my anxiety with his touch, both on my body, with the hand that rested on my back, and through our bond within.
“We’ll all be back together before we know it,” he said. It wasn’t a promise, just a shared desperate hope.
Before we left, I turned to Nadir, who smoked their pipe by the open door, shirtless with only a thin floral robe and pants despite the cold.
“Thank you for all you’ve done for us,” I said, but it wasn’t enough to convey what we owed them.
“I’ll see your thanks when you break the chain, Maiden. Free us all.”
That struck a powerful purpose in me, and I gave a firm nod. Then Nyte and I headed toward Eltanin, who waited patiently.
Thanks to Drystan, he’d spent a long time studying dragons before he was ever certain they would come back into our existence. He knew about saddles from the past, and though it’d taken a lot of coin, provided by Nadir with utmost discretion, he’d had them made for Athebyne and Eltanin by a leathersmith in Vesitire.
Nyte mounted first, and I followed his maneuvers. Exhilaration thrummed within me at the thought of flying on dragonback again. There was a certain power and beauty in it that couldn’t compare with my own wings. As I slipped in front of Nyte, he was quick to shift us both until no space remained between us.
“Eltanin might refuse to fly with us if you’re inappropriate,” I warned.
“What kind of inappropriate things are you thinking of?”
I wiggled to get a better hold of the saddle grip and to prove my point when he squeezed my thigh in warning for the friction of my ass against him.
“Sure you don’t want to ride in front?” I asked innocently.
“Absolutely not.”
My grip tightened and my stomach fluttered when Eltanin rose in preparation to take flight. He was so much bigger than he was when I’d taken a short flight with him during the battle on the Nova province. Nyte leaned into me, and I had to admit I was intimidated.
“Do you remember the time you stole Auster’s Pegasus and returned it with pink hair?” Nyte said, maybe to distract me from my unease as I pressed into him, gripping his forearm around me tightly, as Eltanin launched powerfully into the sky.
Images flooded my mind. I almost giggled until I remembered…
“You put the starlight matter into its food to turn its hair pink!”
“Did I? Maybe my memory needs work.”
“He was sour for the weeks it took to turn back to white.”
“Then I gladly claim full responsibility for it.”
Grinning, with the air breezing through us, I valued the lightness he brought because it felt like treasure in light of the terror we ventured out to.
We soared high above the clouds in an attempt to avoid any wandering celestials in the skies. The air was thin and icy sharp, pricking my cheeks and turning my nose numb.
I slipped off my gloves, shivering as I cupped my hands and conjured a warm sphere of light. I hugged it to myself with a soft sigh, dropping one hand to Nyte’s thigh behind mine to share some of the heat. Nyte hugged me against him, and if we could forget all else, this was quite romantic.
