Page 81 of The Flame King's Queen

Stesha starts to get to his feet, but I hold out my hand to stop him.

“Wait. This is for luck.” I reach into my pocket and tie Zenevieve’s ribbons around his left bicep. He stares at the fluttering ends of the emerald and blue ribbons for a long time.

“They’re not mine,” I add hastily. “They’re—”

“I know whose they are.” He goes on staring at the ribbons, and I have an awful feeling he’s going to rip them off and say that he doesn’t want a part of any human customs, and a rider like him doesn’t need luck.

Slowly, he gets to his feet.

“Now that you have all made it plain that you’re longing for my demise, shall we get on with this?” Kane calls in a sarcastic voice.

“At once,” Stesha says, and turns on his heel. The fluttering emerald and blue ribbons stand out starkly against his white riding leathers.

We watch as they mount their dragons. The scarlet Ragdyn and the yellow Aurissa and Auriana are watching from the sidelines, all of them restless, seeming to sense that their Alpha is about to enter combat. Their flashing eyes and teeth send anxiety spiraling through my stomach.

I move closer to Zabriel and whisper, “Why did Stesha just do all that?”

“Because if he dies, Kane may attempt to snatch power, and Stesha wanted to remind everyone watching who it is they’re loyal to. That is, you and me.” Zabriel eyes the wild flare dragons warily.

“And I thought he was overcome with love for us both,” I whisper.

Zabriel grins. “That as well, but you know our dragonmaster. Always thinking strategically.”

Ravenna’s face is deathly pale as she watches both riders sitting astride their dragons. Stesha’s colors are clutched in her hands so tightly that it seems she’s about to rip them apart.

I move closer to her, touching her wrist so that she lets go of the banner, and I take her hand. “Stesha will be all right. Do not tell anyone I said so, but even Zabriel has trouble besting him in a fight. No one else comes close to the dragonmaster’s abilities.”

Ravenna swallows hard and her nails dig sharply into my palm. Her flesh feels clammy against mine.

Nilak and Auryn take to the skies, and the crowd roars its support for their dragonmaster. Every banner waving through the crowd is blue and white. People yell Stesha’s name and stomp their feet.

I sense Zabriel by my side, his eyes fixed on the heavens. “Stesha’s best chance is for Nilak to go for Auryn’s wings. One torn wing means the dragon will be grounded and Stesha and Kane will fight hand to hand. We already know who the better fighter is. Once Kane is knocked out, the fight will be over.” He sounds confident, but I can smell tension in his scent.

She’s not a small dragon, but Nilak looks shockingly tiny in the sky with that great yellow beast. I hope Stesha will remember that Kane will fight dirty, and he will not give up the advantage of the bigger dragon easily.

The two dragons circle overhead for some time, each belching fire intermittently, warning the other what they’re capable of. Neither dragon can maneuver quickly, so the first strike will be down to who makes the first mistake.

Either Kane or Auryn are impatient, or both of them are, as suddenly the yellow dragon moves in close, opens his jaws, and releases a torrent of dragonfire in Nilak’s direction. With a great lurch of her wings, Nilak shoots upward and twists away from the flames, protecting her rider. When the fire clears, her back legs and the underside of her tail are black with smoke, but she’s unharmed. She’s also furious. Faster than I thought possible for a dragon of her size, she dives for Auryn and sinks her teeth into one of his legs. He roars in anger and kicks out at her, but she lets go and evades his talons.

Auryn’s blood rains from the sky. A cheer goes up. My heart lifts for a moment, and I anticipate the blare of a Temple Mother’s horn ordering the riders and dragons to the ground, but of course nothing happens. This fight is to the death, which of course means the dragons will fight to the death as well unless one of them is grounded.

Before the crowd has finished cheering, Auryn flies upward and positions himself between the sun and Nilak, and uses the golden dazzle to momentarily confuse Stesha and Nilak. The white dragon attempts to evade him, but she flies in the wrong direction, exposing her flank to him, which is clear to all of us on the ground.

Auryn’s talons are out, ready to tear open Nilak’s stomach. I cover my face with my hands and peer through my fingers, frightened I’m about to see the beautiful white dragon gutted in midair. Zabriel seizes my hand and cries out in horror. But a strange thing happens. Auryn veers away, and we hear Kane’s angry shout. The white dragon tumbles forward, and then beats her wings frantically, heading north.

Auryn follows in close pursuit. In disbelief, we watch as the two dragons disappear over the horizon. The wingrunners don’t follow, as they were given orders to contain the riders of the wild flare. The wyverns settle onto the dust, keeping their beady eyes on Aurissa, Auriana, and Ragdyn.

“Where is Stesha going?” I ask Zabriel in confusion. “Or has Nilak panicked? Why did Auryn falter when he could have killed her?”

Zabriel shakes his head. “I don’t know what Auryn is doing, but Nilak would never defy Stesha. Stesha must wish to take the fight to a more open area. Perhaps lure Kane to the ground to protect the dragons. These are not the games I wanted,” Zabriel says in a low voice. “Riders killing each other to prove a point is beneath us. I should follow them and stop this, but I need to give our dragonmaster a chance.”

I reach up and place my hand on his arm, wishing to comfort him even if I don’t know the answer.

Zabriel glances around at the crowd. All the people from Lenhale and beyond who came to witness the games are uneasy and restless. We watch the horizon for any sign of a returning dragon. The moments are long and strained. The shadows move on the ground as the sun slowly traverses the heavens.

Finally, Zabriel can’t take it any longer. “I will go.”

The crowd cheers as they see their king heading for Scourge, but he doesn’t make it that far.

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