“Sintans. Expendable, then.”
My eyes widen as Sybaris opens her mouth. Her gaping maw ignites and flames pour forth, scorching the ground at the Sintans’ feet. The horses rear, scrambling back, and the men shout in alarm. A shower of sparks erupts from the Dragon’s nostrils, catching a low-lying bush on fire. One lands on my hand, singeing my skin before my body absorbs the magic and heals.
I gawk at my unmarred skin. I can absorb the magic of creatures? I can absorb the magic of creatures!
Sybaris opens her mouth again, no doubt for the kill. Before I even realize what I’m doing, I jump in front of the flames. The torrent condenses, tightening on me as my blood pulses to seize the magic.
Dragon’s Breath slams into me. It lifts me off my feet and sweeps me along its flaming path. My clothing ignites. My braid unravels, my hair whipping around my head in a savage dance of fire and sparks. My skin blisters, and I scream, burning alive for the second time in a matter of weeks. Like a rag doll, I tumble through the surge, the pain so fierce my body starts shutting down, overwhelmed.
Through a haze of red and black and agony, I hear Andromeda’s bellow garble with Sybaris’s roaring breath. The Dragon chokes back her fire, and the inferno cuts off before reaching the Sintans. I drop, skidding and rolling until the momentum dies.
My moan is pathetic. I can’t move. I can hardly breathe. This kind of torment has no words. It’s indescribable. Darkness beckons me, the kind of endless night where peace might actually find me on the other side. The lure is so strong I reach for it, desperate for the pain to end.
Griffin drags my failing consciousness back to the surface, shouting my name. I can’t have him running over to me. Dragon’s Breath might not harm him, but Sybaris could still kill him in a hundred different ways. I roll to my knees, shaking and panting. I thank the Gods when healing begins. Under my ruined clothing, my skin restores itself in a rush, my body finding strength and balance again. I stand as the last of the pain fades, a slow smile stretching my lips.
Power like I’ve never known before settles deep within my frame. I stretch out my arms and flex my hands, feeling ancient, terrifying magic surge through my veins and leap to my bidding. For a stunning, magnificent second, I feel my heritage like never before. I feel invincible.
With a laugh that sounds a lot like Andromeda’s creepy mirth, I throw my shoulders back, look Sybaris straight in the eye, and then release a cascade of flames from my wide-open mouth.
Sybaris dives to the right. Too late. A raw scorch mark mars her face and shoulder, leaving the left side of her scalp charred to the bone. A hunk of hair slides to the ground, sizzling.
“Ha!” I shout, and by Gods do I ever mean it.
Sybaris’s eyes roll in her head. She snarls and bucks, beating her gigantic wings against the earth and creating a maelstrom of dust and heat. I duck, shielding my face from the pelting grit.
Andromeda’s words slide out of Sybaris’s singed mouth, cool as ever. “You’ve learned new tricks.”
I have other tricks, too, but the second I disappear, she’ll take it out on Griffin and the others. Besides, Sybaris can track me by scent, so unless I fried her nose, I can’t take the risk. I don’t want Andromeda knowing I can disappear anyway. It would explain too much, and I can’t stomach giving her the satisfaction.
Sybaris’s magic makes me stronger than I’ve ever been before. I run at her and leap as high as I can, striking with my sword. I can’t reach her head, or even her neck, so I slash at her bare chest from underneath.
Sybaris shrieks and swipes at me with her claws, overcoming Andromeda’s control in her pain and rage. I drop and roll, springing back up as she thunders toward me.
“Enough!” Alpha Fisa’s command holds such absolute authority that I almost cower like I used to.
Sybaris changes course with stupefying suddenness. She leaps over me and charges the Sintans, reaching them in two flaps of her enormous wings. Her mouth opens wide, igniting.
“Wait!” I cry.
She stops, fire rolling between her jaws. I throw my sword down and hold up my hands. They shake, and my heart pounds, pumping dread. At least I have the satisfaction of knowing Mother failed. I don’t hate everyone. I won’t sacrifice anyone.
Sybaris turns to me, and I think back to what Mother tried to teach me about creature driving. I never did it—not once—just to spite her, and for the first time I regret my stubbornness.
Focusing, I probe Sybaris’s mind, encountering first darkness and then a sheet of ice—Andromeda’s hold on the Dragon. I dig deeper, but my mental push slips, sliding off a barrier of powerful magic. Sybaris shakes her head, flicking off my untrained effort at compulsion as easily as she would a pesky fly. It takes mere seconds for me to know this isn’t going to work.