Page 82 of The Infirmary for Dragon Burns and Midair Mishaps

I surged forward and caught her hand, letting her hoist me into place behind her.

“Hang on to me!” she called, and in an instant, we were airborne. My stomach wrenched up, then down. Once it settled, the thrill of the flight ate away at my fear. I locked my legs in place, curled my arms around Vaela’s stomach, and understood the desire to soar through the clouds like this. To be utterly and terrifyingly free.

Then I looked down, seeing the plumes of dragonfire lash across the town, and I almost lost my breath. The Wretch moved down alleyways, clawing holes into the sides of buildings, the world shuddering in its wake. It opened its mouth, shook its massive head and a spiral of fire burned through the air.

“It’s going to destroy everything,” I said, trying not to get lost in my memories. There was no time for old grief. If I let myself get overwhelmed by the past, the Wretch was going to destroy my entire future.

I laid my hand on Vaela’s shoulder. “We have to figure out how to stop it.”

27

VAELA

By the time we’d returned from our observation loop, the flames had eaten through the entire roof of the infirmary. Matty, Reo, and Talani had turned up, crowding around a still recovering Gunther while Nisse bandaged his cuts with strips from her shawl.

Min set us down next to them.

Reo ran his hands over his face, staring up at the flames. “I don’t think we’re going to be able to save any of it.”

“All that work Gunther did,” Talani murmured, staring at the fire. Bright orange was reflected in her glassy eyes. “It’s all gone.”

I grabbed their shoulders, shaking sense into them. “There will be time to mourn what was lost later. Buildings can be rebuilt. Supplies can be reordered. Right now, we have to focus on saving the town.”

Reo nodded. “How can we help?”

“Get as many of the townsfolk as you can to Cyrus’s lake. That’ll be the safest place.”

“Start triaging there,” Eden said to them. “Use the water to cool any burns. Treat what you can. Nisse”—she glanced over her shoulder—“when you find Poppy, have her take a group into the woods to forage. You’ll have to rough it, but you should be able to make some quick, rudimentary salves.”

Nisse nodded. “Of course.”

Matty hauled Gunther up with ease. “Why doesn’t it just fly away?” he said.

“Besides the fact the kingsguard insists on firing arrows at it?” someone growled. It was Dalton. He stalked out of the woods toward us, tunic torn, covered in ash.

I went to him, wrapping him in a hug that made him cough. I pulled back. “The nesting shed?”

He shook his head. “It’s gone.” He glanced at the rest of the group. “The chains they used to hold the Wretch have tangled around its wings. It physically can’t fly away.”

“That’s probably why it sounds so pissed,” Reo said.

“What does that mean for us?” Nisse asked.

“It means it’s going to crawl all over town, destroying everything it can get its claws on,” Eden said.

“And those screeches are going to act like a distress call,” I added.

Faces fell one by one.

“You mean it’s going to attract a herd?” Nisse murmured.

I nodded. “If we don’t do something quickly, Ember Ridge is going to be flooded with dragons. Very angry dragons.”

Min growled.

“What can we do?” Nisse whispered.

I pointed to the plume of fire that shot straight into the air, taller than any evergreen in the land. “We cut those chains.”