So, I secure my arrows and a bow to my back and check that all my blades are in place. Just as I’m finished, Jax approaches and hands me one of the leather skins with water. “Let’s go find somewhere to hide that gives us a good place to survey the dragons.”
I take the water, attach it to my hip, and follow him deeper into the forest.
My muscles are tense. I’m jittery with adrenaline. It’s hard to shake. I roll my shoulders and crack my neck to try and shake off some of the tension that coils inside me.
We sneak around a thick bush right on the edge of the forest. From here, we have the perfect view of the clearing.
Immediately, I’m robbed of breath.
It’s nothing like I could have imagined.
Most of the clearing is taken up by a tall waterfall, the water pooling at the bottom. Large boulders line the perimeter on the far shore. All around the place are scattered bones and skulls, plus fresh carcasses of large animals that could be bears or mountain lions.
At the top of the waterfall, two grand-as-life dragons are caught in a fight of sorts. Their long bodies twist and turn as they snap at each other. From this angle I can’t see what’s around them. Are they fighting for food or…something worse?
Aside from the two dragons high above, the clearing is empty…except for one other dragon.
My heart leaps to my throat the moment my eyes land on the black-as-coal dragon that leans over the dark water, drinking.
“That’s her,” I murmur, mesmerized by the color of her scales, the way they glimmer with each movement of her powerful body.
Jax throws me a sideways glance. “How do you know it’s a she? Do dragons even have genders?”
“I have a hunch.”
My focus is razor-sharp on the dragon. What did Elder Arcon say? Don’t approach the dragon in the feeding grounds? Track it to its den.
Unease coils in my stomach.
This is my chance.
She’s alone here, in the clearing.
If I let her walk away now, I might never find her again.
I didn’t come all this way to hesitate.
The clearing grows quiet. The dragons who fought have settled their quarrel, and one has flown away.
Right then, the dragon raises its head, and as if it could feel me watching her from the edge of the clearing, her golden eyes lock with mine.
It’s not a warning.
Not fear.
It’s something else.
A breath hitches in my chest.
I swallow the lump in my throat, and before I know it, my feet are taking me forward.
“Phoenix!” Jax hisses from behind me.
I don’t hesitate. I ignore his call, and step into the clearing.
The dragon—mydragon—watches me, still as a statue.
My heart pounds in my chest with each step I take. Fear claws at me, making it hard to breathe. But I don’t let my gaze waver.
