It says my name again. This time it’s a guttural sound that makes the earth beneath my feet shake.
I want to slap my hands over my ears and curl into a ball, to pretend this is nothing more than a nightmare, but I can’t give up like that.
More is at stake than my life, or even the fate of the human world. If this monster takes me, I’ll be exiled to a living hell for eternity, bound inside the demon forever.
The clearing blurs as my eyes sweep it, hunting for anything I can use, before my magic stirs and reminds me I have access to something more powerful than a makeshift weapon.
The familiar pull tightens and my magic rises. Power floods my veins, coating my hands in magenta and purple flames. I peer into the darkness, searching, not quite ready for what’s about to happen, but at least standing firm, not willing to go down without a fight.
Movement in the trees draws my attention, though it takes me a moment to understand what I’m seeing. Dark mist is coiling along the ground, writhing toward me like snakes.
My breath comes out in short bursts, panic trying to swallow me.
A roar sounds from the sky, and I snap my gaze up to see the blood moon obscured by a descending body full of teal scales and huge leathery wings.
Gasping, I reel back just as the beast lands in front of me.
Familiar green eyes, now slitted in their reptilian form, stare down at me.
My mouth drops open. Even though I’ve never seen Becks in his dragon form, I instantly know it’s him.
He’s here. It’s going to be okay.
The thought barely registers before a deep growl ripples through the forest, loud enough to resonate in my chest and drag my attention back to the darkness slithering toward me.
Becks snorts, his breath fogging in front of his face and scenting the air with smoke and ash. He drops to his haunches and jerks his head. I think he’s telling me to climb on.
I’m not going to wait to be asked twice.
With effort, I scramble up onto his back, finding a place to sit between the spiky ridges running down his spine.
With a powerful surge of muscle, Becks launches us into the air.
The ground drops away too fast, my stomach lurching as icy wind slams into me. I clutch at the ridges along his spine, fingers numb and burning as I struggle to hold on. His wings beat hard, each stroke a thunderous effort as the forest shrinks beneath us.
Below us, a furious shriek rips through the forest, but we’re high above. Safe.
Relief crashes through me. He came. He saved me.
The moment shatters as dark smoke boils up from the ground. It surges upward like a living thing, coiling and stretching.
A warning shout rips from my throat, but it’s too late. A thick cord of darkness lashes around Becks’ neck like a whip.
Becks’ thunderous roar is cut short when the cord jerks taut, as if something on the ground has grabbed the other end and hauled it down.
Becks jerks sideways, almost folding with the force of the pull. The world tilts; the sky and forest blur together. The sudden lurch throws me off balance. My stomach heaves, my fingers claw for purchase along the ridges of his spine, but the force is too strong.
I scream as gravity yanks me free and I tumble out into empty space.
I’m falling.
Becks roars, twisting midair above me as he rips himself free of the writhing smoke and dives after me. His claws catch me mid-fall, massive fingers locking around my body as he yanks me back against his chest.
Spreading his wings, he tries to slow our descent, but a heartbeat later the dark smoke strikes again. Black tendrils lash out, coiling around us both and hauling us down.
Becks spins mid-fall and folds his body around mine instinctively, shielding me as we crash through branches and leaves.
The forest explodes around us. Pain detonates as we slam into the ground, the force driving the air from my lungs.
