The two dragons glided along for a few hours before Slate began to descend over a field in the territory of a kingdom closer to his own lair and far enough away from Beelzanborg that the soldiers who were clearly rallying to come after the Heart of Magic couldn’t reach them--yet. He touched down in a field of golden wheat, catching the sunbeams and sparkling like each stalk was made of a precious metal.
Nya climbed off the dragon, her blood still pumping hard through her veins as she considered all that had just happened. The Heart of Magic was safe in her bag, which meant she controlled all of the magic in the universe. It was both a hefty burden to bear and a tantalizing bundle of possibilities. If Nya stopped to think about all that she could do with that sort of power, she would never be able to hand it over to Slate, and he’d certainly regret not having taken it the first time she offered.
Flint changed into his human form as well, and the two brothers embraced this time. “I had no idea that’s where they were keeping you,” Slate said.
“Yes, all these years, I’ve been guarding the very thing I hoped someone would steal away,” Flint said, shaking his head and running his hand through his hair. “It feels good to be a human again, at least for a little while.”
Nya wasn’t sure how long Flint had been in the position he’d just described, but she knew it had to be for the duration of the Dragon Moon tradition, and that went back decades and decades. The idea of him standing there in chains for all of those years, unable to shift or fly, was unbelievable to her. She was glad she’d had a part in freeing him.
“Nya,” Slate said, moving to her. “We will need to get the Heart of Magic back to safety. There’s a chest hidden in the wall in the library in my home. I will need you to take it there and secure it.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “Me? But… how will I get there?”
“Our thunder is coming,” he assured her. “One of them will take you back.”
“What about you?” She couldn’t see herself handing the magical stone off to anyone other than him. Even putting it in his castle wouldn’t be as compelling.
“I must go back. Beelzanborg has surely prepared for this. We will need to destroy their armies before they begin to invade the surrounding kingdoms. They will destroy everyone and everything in their way until they reach our mountain.”
Nya wasn’t sure what to say. He was trusting her to do something she had no idea she could actually carry through with. The idea that she might keep the stone for herself didn’t seem to even cross Slate’s mind. “All right,” she said, but she wasn’t sure she meant it. The fact that he trusted her to do this didn’t change the fact that she didn’t trust herself.
The three of them stayed in the wheatfield for a few hours, eating what was left of the foodstuffs from Nya’s bag and drinking water from canteens. Slate and Flint discussed the battle that was sure to ensue and how best to combat the Beelzanborg army. Now that the power of the stone was with them, Slate would be able to wield its power from anywhere, as soon as Nya put it in the chest in his castle. At the moment, she had control of the power because the Heart of Magic was in her possession. Its greatest power would be giving the dragons the ability to fly, and Slate was confident they were well on their way, carrying the soldiers they’d been training for all of these years on their backs, despite the fact that none of the donations had ever trained to actually ride a dragon.
Flint was telling Slate the layout of the castle when a noise in the distance caught all of their attention. Nya didn’t hear it at first, but as they stood quietly listening, ears tipped to the skies, the sound registered. It was the beating of wings--hundreds, if not thousands--of them.
Nya turned and looked to the skies, seeing the skies dotted with dozens and dozens of winged creatures in an array of colors, shapes and sizes. The thunder was coming, and it was an unbelievable sight to see. Nya stared up at the dragons in shock and admiration. To think that her actions had allowed this many dragons to finally find her wings again made her feel as if she’d done something amazing.
Most of the dragons flew overhead without stopping, a few of their riders waving down at the trio in the wheatfield. Nya saw Gavin on the back of a large blue and gold dragon and waved at him. His ride dipped down so that Gavin could return the wave and share a smile with Nya before the dragon shot back up into the air, its wings flapping furiously to gain the proper height.
One of the dragons, a large green one with no rider, fluttered down from the sky and came to rest not far away from where they were standing. He quickly transformed into a familiar form. Nya cringed. It was Gator. At least his clothing stayed with him, as it had with Slate and Flint, and he wasn’t standing there undressed.
“Gator! It’s great to see you!” Flint said, running over to clasp hands with the trainer.
“You as well,” Gator said. His eyes fell on Nya, and he grumbled something that might’ve been a greeting.
Slate turned to face her. “Nya, Gator will take you to the castle to place the stone, and then the two of you will come back to the battle to join us.”
Her eyes widened. “Gator?” she said, wondering why he, of all dragons, had been chosen by Slate for such an important duty.
Slate nodded. “He is the best person for the job.”
Nya looked at the trainer she’d easily bested and embarrassed a few days earlier and doubted that was the case. But it was clear that Slate wanted to get back to his thunder and to the battle. “All right,” she said, wanting to add that she didn’t trust Gator, but she did trust Slate, and if this is what he wanted her to do, she’d do it.
The dragon king moved toward her, and Nya’s breath caught in her throat as his arms came around her. She leaned into his chest, his fingers brushing through her hair. “I know you can do this, sweetheart,” he whispered, his lips grazing her cheek.
Tingles of electricity shot through Nya’s body at his touch. She took a deep breath, inhaling that smoky scent that was innately Slate. “I will,” she promised him. He kissed the top of her head and then moved away from her, leaving Nya wondering if it might’ve been another kiss on the lips if they hadn’t had an audience.
Flint had an amused expression on his face as Nya stepped around Slate toward Gator, but she ignored him. Gator shifted back into his dragon form and lowered down. Nya mounted him the same way that she did Slate, and as soon as she was settled, the dragon took off. Nya turned to lift a hand in Slate’s direction. He waved back, but then she had to give her full attention to Gator because he was being anything but gentle with her.
Nya held on to the unfamiliar dragon, the Heart of Magic in a bag on her back, and headed toward Slate’s castle, determined to do the right thing.
Despite her ability to see the future, she had no idea just how difficult it was going to be. In her mind’s eye, she saw herself placing the stone in the chest, but she knew there would be obstacles in her way. Deadly ones.