Page 21 of The Dragonrider and the Void
They needed height, and quickly. The wards of the sanctuary temporarily hid them from sight, but their use of magic allowed both Barrik and Killaborden to pinpoint their location.
White Eye charged through the arch, thrusting his wings out as he took flight. They stayed low, carving a tight corner around a ridge. Lark twisted in her seat to see her former mentor and his dragon diving after them.
“We need to keep them on our tail,” she said to White Eye. “We need to lead them away from the sanctuary so they don’t return to investigate.”
White Eye didn’t need to slow as they flew down the mountainside. He carved through the air with his legs just a few feet off the snow-dusted rock, his wings nearly touching the sides of the canyon.
Lark studied Barrik’s position behind them as they neared. Lark and White Eye had been in this position before, with Barrik and Killaborden hunting them down. Only this time, Lark wasn’t going to make the same mistake. This time, they were going to escape together, without any bystanders being killed in the chaos of their fight.
Killaborden gained on them, his and Barrik’s angle of descent becoming much more aggressive as they drew closer.
“Now!” Lark said.
Lark pressed herself flat against White Eye’s neck as he surged upward. The edges of her vision faded slightly as she was sucked tight to the saddle by the force of gravity pulling on her. White Eye’s wings flexed, their dark tips spreading as he rocketed upward too quickly for Killaborden to react. They burst through the cloud layer wisping around the mountains out into open sky.
Wind whipped through Lark’s hair as White Eye banked hard to the west. She struggled to check over her shoulder. Killaborden breached the clouds below them, climbing at an impressive rate for his size.
“They’re coming up fast,” Lark said, as White Eye tensed in preparation for any necessary evasive maneuvers.
Lark clipped her brismil armor into place. The black sheen of her armor covered her from head to toe and sent a bolstering thrill of energy through her. She mentally reached for her fae power and Nix’s fae presence warmed her chest as she prepared to use it against Barrik at a moment’s notice.
“We need to let them get close enough to continue following us. Then we’ll take it to the next level, and break for the Everburning Forest,” she said to Nix and White Eye.
Killaborden came up from under White Eye. Barrik thrust out with his brismil spear, the gleam of it shimmering in the crisp daylight. White Eye rolled sideways, his wings tucking close as they plummeted a hundred feet to avoid engaging in the fight. The maneuver bought them seconds, but Killaborden’s larger wingspan let him close the distance quickly.
Lark drew her brismil sword and Nightfang sent ripples through her well of power. As she held it, Lark couldn’t help but smile. The weapon felt right in her hands; this very weapon had forged her reputation as a dangerous dragonrider.
But I am no longer Marcel Heartfell,Lark told herself.
Killaborden blasted the air near her with his breath of fire, causing White Eye to veer right.
“They’re trying to herd us north,” Nix said.
“You’re right. He’s trying to push us away from the Everburning Forest,” Lark said.
“They think it’s working. Otherwise, Barrik would be using his powers,” Nix said.
They sped northwest, weaving between clouds, testing the waters of a contest but neither Barrik nor Lark committed to a full-on attack.
Are we far enough from the sanctuary now?she thought.
We are,Nix replied and White Eye agreed.
Then let’s end this chase.
White Eye banked hard left.
Barrik’s spear flashed outward, missing White Eye’s wing by inches. The speed in which he reacted left a trail of distorted air in its wake. Barrik withdrew as Killaborden corkscrewed through the air in a banking turn. As they twisted over White Eye’s rear, he thrust a second time. Lark brought her sword up to counter, meeting Barrik’s spear in equal measure. Brismil clashed against brismil in a shower of sparks. The impact jarred her arm to the shoulder, but she pushed through, forcing his spear to the side before he withdrew again.
“You’re making a mistake, Ella!” Barrik called over the wind.
“And you made a mistake putting a tracker on my dragon,” Lark spat, easily parrying another spear thrust from him. Anger pushed its way to the surface, instructing White Eye to go on the offensive. From a straight and level attitude, White Eye flared his wings, suddenly slowing and dropping behind Killaborden.
Killaborden snapped his jaws as they flew past. Lark drew on her bonds. Without thinking, she opened pathways from White Eye and Nix. Concern from White Eye washed over her, so she hesitated as Killaborden carved a tight turn to face them.
Her hesitation allowed Barrik to prepare to slash his spear at Lark. The moment he pulled back, Lark spotted faint halos of dust gathering behind his brismil. He was gathering power to strike a lethal blow. Lark opened her bond a fraction of a second too late. She had Nightfang firmly in her grip. Their blades met again, this time with Barrik’s power pushing the massive blade atop the spear through. Lark blocked him, but the added strength from White Eye passed through her the instant after the collision. The force of his strike sent her weapon spinning from her grip as they passed each other. She watched it vanish, thankful that the brismil scabbard was secured to the saddle. The blade reappeared in its sheath.
White Eye’s planned maneuver came to Lark as though they were moving as one. She gripped the saddle tighter the instant before he twisted into a vertical climb. Lark pressed herself flat against his neck, fighting the force of gravity trying to tear her from the saddle. Behind them, Killaborden roared in frustration at their sudden change in direction. It forced him to break off his attack.
