Текст книги "On wings of blood"

Автор книги: Briar Boleyn

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Текущая страница: 36 (всего у книги 36 страниц)

Layers of rock slid away from the dragon’s body, revealing sleek, midnight-black scales.

It shook its wings free from the debris, unfurling them with a powerful snapping sound.

With another, earth-shattering roar, the black dragon stretched its wings wide, blocking out the moonlight.

The sight was horrifying. Utterly magnificent. Utterly terrifying.

I pushed against Blake. “Move. Blake, move.” My voice was hoarse, desperate, and this time, he did as I said.

I scrambled to my feet, my body weak. I shook my head a little and stepped towards the dragon.

He was looking back at me.

The creature was immense. Seeing the skulls had been one thing. This was another.

His wings stretched wide, every inch covered in shimmering black scales, an impenetrable-looking armor.

His eyes were deep-set, reptilian, glowing like embers in the dark.

His head was long, graceful, and crowned with dark, spiraling horns.

He lowered his head slightly and his jaw parted, revealing rows of razor-sharp, white teeth.

My heart raced, but still I took step after step towards the dragon.

Then I heard him speak.

“Thank you for waking me.”

I froze. He was speaking in Classical Sangrathan, his mind to mine.

“I didn’t wake you,” I replied, my voice trembling slightly. “I think perhaps there’s been some mistake.”

“No mistake.” The dragon’s head tilted slightly, eyes narrowing as he regarded me. Despite his massive size, there was an elegance to his movements. “You spoke the words. You severed the binding. You brought me back.”

“I don’t understand...” I began. Then my thoughts flew back to the incantation I had performed in the very same courtyard, months ago. The one I had used to break the soul-binding.

“By blood and breath, by night and sky,” I whispered. “The binding of souls I sever.”

The dragon inclined his head slightly.

“Let what was trapped be freed to fly,

No longer bound forever.

From heart to soul, from blood to bone,

Let life return where stone has grown.

What’s locked away, now shall take flight,

Awakened be the soul tonight,” he recited. “Old words. Powerful ones.”

“I don’t understand,” I whispered back. “The ritual. It was meant to end the binding. To set a soul free.”

“And it did,” the dragon pointed out.

“But I didn’t mean...to bring something back.”

“Perhaps the pages of your book were stuck together,” the dragon growled, voice tinged with amusement at my predicament. “You performed a ritual meant to end a soul binding, yes, and to return a soul to life. And now, I am awake.”

The dragon’s wings beat slowly, sending gusts of wind through the courtyard that rattled the pebbles and debris and blew my hair back.

My mind raced, frantically trying to remember everything I’d read in Professor Rodriguez’s books about dragons.

Dragons weren’t mindless beasts. They were intelligent, ancient beings with vast wisdom and power. They lived longer than blightborn. Most could live longer than highbloods. Bonding with one was an almost sacred act and a dangerous one. It required initiation. Bonding was the only way to tether a dragon’s loyalty.

I couldn’t believe I was actually thinking of attempting it. Not after what Blake had just put me through.

But if I didn’t at least try, what would happen to me?

My thoughts scrambled as I sifted through what I could recall about the rituals, the methods. I could feel the dragon’s eyes on me, watching my every move with a sort of detached curiosity.

Time was slipping away.

“Nyxaris, Duskdrake of House Avari,” I began. My voice was trembling. Would this ancient creature really respect anything I had to say?”

“Ah, so you know my name,” the dragon rumbled. “And are you of House Avari, young one?”

“No, but I... I need to initiate the bond,” I stammered. “I can’t let you leave. I’m the only dragon rider in Sangratha.” The words sounded absolutely ridiculous as they came out of my mouth.

The dragon must have thought so, too. He snorted, hot puffs of breath washing over me. I flinched.

“Nyxaris of House Avari, you... you are magnificent. Your scales shine like the night itself, glistening with the wisdom of the ages.” I wracked my brain, trying to remember the words I had read. Why, oh, why hadn’t I devoted more time to those books? “Your beauty... It’s like the stars. Each star must quiver as they see your majesty. Bound to you in reverence.”

The dragon’s eyes narrowed slightly and I could feel his amusement growing, but I pressed on, my voice gaining strength.

“You are the most powerful being this world has ever known. You’ve endured centuries. Seen empires rise and fall.” I had no idea if any of this was true, but it sure seemed possible. “No one else, not even another dragon, could possibly match the depth of your knowledge or the breadth of your courage or the strength of your powerful wings.”

Nyxaris let out a low rumble. “Flattery, little one?” The dragon’s voice was ripe with amusement. “You think you may charm me into submission?”

My heart raced. “Not just flattery, O Black Nyxaris. Sincerity. I see your greatness. I sense your wisdom. You deserve to be honored, revered... and to have a rider worthy of you. Someone who can carry your legacy forward and stand loyally by your side.”

I took another step closer, my eyes locking with the dragon’s gaze. “Let me be that rider. I’ll be your companion, never your master.” Somehow that seemed important to say. “I will never bind you or hold you back.” As if I could if I tried. “Together, we can...”

Nyxaris made a low resonant noise. The sound vibrated through the air, shaking the ground I stood on, and I wobbled, throwing my arms out to keep my balance.

It was a laugh, I realized. The dragon was laughing at me.

“Let me stop you there, child. Enough. Do you think I am so easily swayed by flowery words?”

Panic flooded through me. I closed my eyes, searching for the words I had read, the phrases used by riders who came long before me.

I raised my hands, palms up, and sank to my knees, trying one last time. “By blood and breath, by night and sky, I pledge myself to you, Nyxaris of House Avari. Your beauty, your power are unmatched. Let my soul be bound to yours, my life to your flight. Together, we will...”

“Stop.” Nyxaris’s massive head tilted slightly, his eyes growing brighter and more cold. “Do you not think I have heard these words before, spoken by riders now long dead? Do not waste your breath. I will not fall for it again.”

My heart sank. “What do you mean?”

The dragon moved backwards, his wings beating a little faster.

He was getting ready to fly. He’d leave me here behind and never return.

“Nyxaris, please,” I begged, my voice cracking slightly. “If you leave, I think they’ll kill me. They’ll kill me if they think you aren’t coming back and that it was my fault. I can’t survive without you.”

Nyxaris's eyes remained locked on mine, cold and unwavering. “Then, little one, you had best get very good at lying,” the dragon growled. “Make them believe I will return, if you wish. But I have no plans to do so.”

Something in the dragon’s eyes softened as he looked at me.

“You have freed me from a cursed slumber. Restored my soul in an unasked for gift. But make no mistake, that is the only reason you are still kneeling there on the stone. Any other creature, I would have already burned to ash.” I felt a shiver go down my spine. “Especially that highblood man skulking behind you,” Nyxaris added.

“So you do not consider yourself bound to House Avari?” I asked, trying one last time.

“No. Even if I did, you are not of that house. Are you?”

I shook my head wordlessly.

“Do not mistake this for kindness, little one.” The dragon's words held a quiet, terrifying power. “It is simply gratitude. Fleeting as it may be.”

Nyxaris gave a final, dismissive glance towards me, and then unfurled his wings fully, beating them against the air with a force that rattled the stones.

Slowly, the dragon’s black-scaled body rose up from the courtyard.

My breath hitched as I watched the dragon lift higher and higher, his great wings stirring the air like a storm. The wind was whipping through my hair, pushing me backwards, and yet I couldn’t tear my eyes away.

Nyxaris was the most magnificent thing I had ever seen and in a moment, he’d be gone forever.

With another powerful beat of his wings, the black dragon rose up over Bloodwing Academy. As he soared, he roared and the sound echoed across the stones, shaking the walls of the courtyard.

Every student, every professor at Bloodwing would have heard that roar, if they had not already felt the tremors. Many had no doubt rushed to their windows and even now were witnessing the dragon’s ascent.

Nyxaris banked sharply, wings catching the wind as he turned in the direction of Veilmar. He flew away from me, across the moonlit sky, his black form slowly becoming nothing but a distant shadow over the city.

For a moment, I stood there, frozen, the courtyard now eerily silent. The wind had settled. Yet I could still feel the echo of the dragon’s presence.

The enormity of what had just happened settled into my bones.

I had awakened a dragon.

Finally, I turned around.

Blake stood behind me, his eyes wide, still staring up at the sky where the dragon had vanished. His face was pale, streaked with blood from the wound on his head.

Our eyes met, the weight of everything hanging between us unspoken, too vast for words.

A dragon was free. The world had heard his roar.

There would be no going back.

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ALSO BY BRIAR BOLEYN

Blood of a Fae Series

Queen of Roses

Court of Claws

Empress of Fae

Knight of the Goddess

Bloodwing Academy

On Wings of Blood

Book 2 – COMING EARLY 2025

Written as Fenna Edgewood...

The Gardner Girls Series

Masks of Desire (The Gardner Girls’ Parents’ Story)

Mistakes Not to Make When Avoiding a Rake (Claire’s Story)

To All the Earls I’ve Loved Before (Gwen’s Story)

The Seafaring Lady’s Guide to Love (Rosalind’s Story)

Once Upon a Midwinter’s Kiss (Gracie’s Story)

The Gardner Girls’ Extended Christmas Epilogue (Caroline & John’s Story – Available to Newsletter Subscribers)

Must Love Scandal Series

How to Get Away with Marriage (Hugh’s Story)

The Duke Report (Cherry’s Story)

A Duke for All Seasons (Lance’s Story)

The Bluestocking Beds Her Bride (Fleur & Julia’s Story)

Blakeley Manor Series

The Countess’s Christmas Groom

Lady Briar Weds the Scot

Kiss Me, My Duke

My So-Called Scoundrel

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Briar Boleyn is the fantasy romance pen name of USA TODAY bestselling author Fenna Edgewood. Briar rules over a kingdom of feral wildling children with a dark fae prince as her consort. When she isn’t busy bringing new worlds to life, she can be found playing RPG video games, watching the birds at her bird feeder and pretending she’s Snow White, or being sucked into a captivating book. Her favorite stories are the ones full of danger, magic, and true love.

Find Briar around the web:

https://www.instagram.com/briarboleynauthor/

https://www.bookbub.com/profile/briar-boleyn

https://www.amazon.com/stores/Briar-Boleyn/author/B0BLWFKHWC

https://www.tiktok.com/@authorbriarboleyn

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