Page 17 of The Barbaric Fae's Soul

With that done, I padded silently to the cave’s entrance, and then slowly made my way out.

The klynna had gonesilent above us a few hours earlier, but when Korrik had checked outside, he saw it sitting on a set of trees directly in front of the cave, waiting.

I’d never seen one before, so when I stepped up to the entrance and peered outside, my lips parted.

I’d expected the creature to look like a monster.

Size-wise, it was. The thing was the size of an airplane.

But it was the most gorgeous airplane I’d ever seen.

It was scaled from head to toe, its coloring starting a light red and growing darker until it was a deep, glittering crimson at the tail. Its wings were a feathered masterpiece, with the same ombre-like style as the rest of its body. When it moved, the feathers blew a little in the wind, revealing gleaming scales beneath them.

It was strong, elegant, and absolutely stunning.

And it was going to try to kill me when I took to the sky.

That was pretty damn terrifying.

I glanced backward, over my shoulder. Though I couldn’t see into the cave from there, I remembered what Priel had said.

If you had wings, you would have a better chance.

And I let out a slow, shaky breath.

This was the best chance for all of us to escape. I’d flown a lot, in the past few months; I was just as fast as the other phoenixes, despite my size in comparison to their gigantic male ones.

I had a chance at making it out of this alive. More of a chance than Korrik did, so I couldn’t let him take the fall for me.

And overthinking about it wasn’t going to get me anywhere.

So I swallowed my fear, and acted.

My feet were light on the stone beneath them as I tapped into Vevol’s magic, using her power to launch myself into the air and take off. Wind rushed against my face, through my feathers and the flames of my magic, and I pushed myself to move faster than I ever had before.

The klynna roared at me, its massive wings shooting it into the sky at my back, but I didn’t let myself pause or look or slow down in the slightest.

I didn’t have time.

My heart pounded, my wings pumping.

And I couldfeelthe monster in the sky behind me.

Trying to catch me.

But I remained far enough ahead that it didn’t touch me, despite its snapping teeth and swinging claws.

I was going to survive.

All of us were.

After a few hours,my energy started to fade.

I should’ve expected that. Flying at full speed for long periods of time wasn’t something I’d ever done before. Usually, I would slow long enough to find my rhythm. Thanks to the desperation coursing through me, I couldn’t find it.

My body ached.

The stress of being chased by a monster that would eat me like a snack was wearing down on me.

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