MasukIt's not surprising that Skylar is struggling with what happened last night.
Yet danger breathes on every side,For truth too long must cease to hide.The king, with eyes like coals alight,Now scents the wind and smells the blight.SkylarAfter several hours of flying, I understand what Bynjym meant about needing to practice long distance flying. My legs are much stronger, so it’s easier to keep my seat, but that also means that my legs are spread around Cyryl’s large body for longer periods of time.When my hips begin to cramp painfully, Cyryl tells Bynjym that we need to land.I hiss as I pull one leg over her body like Ryuki taught me. When I slide off her body, he’s there to catch me.“Bynjym said you’re cramping.”“Ugh! You weren’t kidding about this,” I say trying to walk off the cramp.“Here, do these stretches,” he says, showing me how to help stretch the area.He puts the bottoms of his feet together in front of his body. His knees are touching the ground and when he leans over, his body lies flat on ground and over his feet. Before I follow his exam
With Bynjym bound in soul and scale,He guards the flight, he guards the tale.He fights the lords who steal with might,And shields the eggs through storm and night.Skylar“So, I’ve been thinking,” Ryuki begins.I love coming to the lake. First, it always feels good to wash off the grime of living outside. Now that Ryuki and I are sexually active all the time, it’s good to make sure my hygiene remains good as well. But here, I also feel like I can just be me. I remember when Ryuki first brought me here and I had to strip off my shirt and bare myself to the world. I felt so exposed, so raw. Now, I feel free. I love the feeling of the sun on my skin, warming me and making my body tingle in anticipation, or like now, the sun is kissing my skin and keeping the tingles from our recent lovemaking humming through my body.He sucks on one of my nipples which always seem hard these days, ready for him at any moment.“About what?” I ask, sliding my fingers through his hair. That’s another nic
He sees within a fire the same,A soul unbowed by blood or name.And she, in him, the sky set free,Not chained by kings, but destiny.Ryuki‘She thought our queen was going to go easy on her,’ Bynjym chuckles as we watch Skylar once again lose her seat.My stomach tightens, hating to see her in freefall, but I know Cyryl will never let her fall to her death.The day after Skylar’s bonding flight with Cyryl, her training started. Just like Bynjym, probably partly because of Bynjym, Cyryl’s first lesson for Skylar was to trust that she will never let her fall to her death.I’d watched on Bynjym’s back as Cyryl rose high in the sky. According to Bynjym, Skylar was feeling overly confident in her ability to keep her seat. Cyryl taught her two very important lessons at once. Never become complaisant while you’re flying and know that your dragon would kill themselves trying to save you before they let you fall to your death.I knew what was going to happen because Bynjym was making sure Cy
So choose your side and guard your breath, For truth rides close on wings of death. A crown may fall, a world may change, When love and fire rearrange. SkylarI didn’t know what to expect when I rode Cyryl for the first time. With all the power I’ve started to harness, every new thing, everything that will make me stronger, scares me. I already have more power than I feel like I should and power has a way of getting out of control. It's why I needed his reassurance before I took this flight with Cyryl. I trust Ryuki and I know he'll always be honest with me.I also know that’s why Ryuki has insisted that we practice using this power. The more I practice, the more I realize that he’s right about many things. I am getting stronger and I’m able to harness the power of more dragons as I get stronger.What worries me is the purpose of this power. Why do I have it? Why now? Why me?‘Because you are a queen’s rider, Skylar. Our thunder has been dwindling in its numbers. We have become wea
And Ryuki waits, with sword and flame,To stand beside her and stake his claim.Together now, the fire burns,The tide will shift, the balance turns.RyukiIt was a risk telling Skylar how I felt about her. She’s obviously shown a preference for me over the other riders, but I wasn’t sure how much of that was her and how much was driven by Cyryl and the rest of the thunder.When she told me she was falling in love with me, it felt like everything that has happened in my past, every terrible and every wonderful thing, has brought me to this place. It brought me to her.It was the first time our dragons didn’t connect in our minds when we were together. Usually, they join us when we mate, but not this time. Still, it was one of the most incredible moments of my life. I could feel Skylar’s love for me just as I hope she could feel mine for her.When we walk out of the water, I take her hand as we get our clothes and get dressed.‘Queen Cyryl, I think you should try to fly on your own for
He sees within a fire the same,A soul unbowed by blood or name.And she, in him, the sky set free,Not chained by kings, but destiny.SkylarWhile Ryuki and I bathe, I think about what he said. Can I really harness the power of the thunder?I look at where Cyryl is flying in the air around Bynjym's head. They’re playfully snapping at each other. I suddenly realize that she's nearly three-quarters of his size. Before I know it, she'll be a fully matured dragon.Rather than think about that, I focus on what Ryuki said. What would power like that look like? I know I’m getting stronger because I’m bonded to Cyryl. I also know that eventually, she’ll be stronger than Bynjym and he’s a very powerful dragon.“What’s going on in that intelligent mind of yours, Skylar?” Ryuki asks, pulling me to him.I wrap my legs around his waist, tracing the now familiar lines of his muscular body.“The power that you spoke of … do you really think I could pull from all the dragons?”“I think it’s something
Dragons of old, with eyes like stars,Held truths more vast than mortal scars.Their eggs, like jewels of breath and flame,Now fall to hands that know not shame.SkylarI watch as my father and his soldiers enter the castle walls. My father looks smug and proud.“My people, we have done it,” he sa
In elder days when flame met air,And dragons ruled the heavens fair,Where once they soared on wings of grace,Now storm and sorrow take their place.Ryuki“Seriously? You’re hungry again?” I ask.‘I am a dragon. I’m always hungry. Just be glad I don’t eat you,’ Bynjym, my dragon says.I love my d
**A special thank you to my Delta, Angela, for writing the poem that you'll see throughout this novel.Let this be read in whispered halls,Where shadows linger and embers call.A tale of fire, of sky, of strife,Of stolen eggs and secret life.SkylarI look at myself in the mirror as my maids put
For kings and queens, their hunger wide,Would trade all love to mount and ride.They scorn the bond, they steal by night,To claim the sky through wrongful right.RyukiWhen a Queen calls, the dragons come. All of them.As we fly toward the castle where the golden egg was taken, the setting sun gl







