The kitchen ladies were working overtime too, getting plenty of on-the-go food ready, especially the precious yerba rolls which could be eaten in mid-flight to give a burst of energy.
The dragons were all fed well so they would have energy to fly in the morning and then the massive herds of sheep and goats were herded into the lower caverns where they would be safe from Madling attacks.
Professor Zephyr sent word to the nearby villages for everyone to prepare and to stay indoors during the battle. Even one bite could mean madness and death spreading to an entire village if they weren’t careful.
“Remember, don’t ever touch a Madling victim,” her message to them read. “Once bitten, a person is beyond help or hope. They must be sequestered until they expire from the Madling venom.”
And while all this was going on, the more experienced Wings were flying and drilling, running formations and hoping to be ready for the coming attack.
“they’re a sorry sight,” was L’eesha’s point of view, when I finally had time to go and see her. We were on the Flight Terraces watching, since the First years hadn’t been grouped into Wings yet and didn’t have any experience flying in formation.
I had to agree she was right. The Wings were used to working independently but when they tried to fly together as a unit, they were sloppy at best. It had been years since they had practiced all together—mostly because everyone thought the Madling threat was over.
For years, the Wings had only practiced for the Academy’s internal competitions, where each Wing flew separately and tried to outdo the others with their individual style. It was the worst possible foundation for getting all of them to work together as one, I thought. But that was what was needed if the Madlings were coming—and we knew they were.
“those flag things are hard to see up there,” L’eesha pointed out, nodding to where two of the Wings were wheeling in a very sloppy formation as they tried to fly together for the first time. “i could tell them how to fly, if only they would let me,” she added, and I could feel her frustration rubbing me like a hard-bristled brush.
“I know you could. But remember, Professor Humbolt doesn’t want you to do that,” I reminded her. I had already gone to the professor to ask if L’eesha could help, but his answer had been a resounding “NO.”
“I won’t have some female dragon telling my Wings where to go and what to do!” He’d snapped at me, when I offered her services. “We have our signals and they work just fine!”
“But—”
“Enough, Lysandra!” He’d said, making a shooing gesture. “Get away before I fail you once and for all!”
And with that answer, I had to be content, though it was incredibly frustrating. I wasn’t even going to be allowed to fly in the battle because L’eesha hadn’t been part of the North Wing long enough. So we were going to have to watch from the sidelines as everyone else fought the Madlings.
Ryse is fighting, though, whispered a little voice in my head. What if something happens to him?
It was a question I didn’t want an answer to. I put my arms as far around L’eesha’s long neck as I could—she was now so large that circling her neck completely was out of the question—and breathed in her burnt cinnamon scent to calm myself.
I just hoped we would be ready for the battle next morning…but I desperately feared we wouldn’t be.
68
AURORA
That night I had the strangest dream.
I had fallen asleep in Ryse’s arms, knowing full well it might be our last night together. I had begged him to make love to me, but he steadfastly refused.
“I might get you pregnant,” he said, frowning at me. “And then what if something happens to me? I won’t leave you in that position, little one.”
“Nothing’s going to happen!” I had insisted, clinging to him tightly. “Please, Ryse—I want to be with you before the battle.”
“You are with me. I won’t risk leaving you pregnant and alone,” he’d told me sternly, even as he wound his arms around me, drawing me closer. “If something happens to me, keep your secret as long as you can, sweetheart. Burn Elleena’s journal—it talks too much about how Golden Queens only bond with women. Keep yourself safe and always wear your pendant.”
And with that, I had to be content. For though I felt his hardness branding my hip, he refused to make love with me on the eve of battle.
It was Elleena who I dreamed about, when I had finally drifted off into a troubled sleep. In my dream she was a short woman with wise gray eyes and brown hair in a long braid down her back. She was standing on the Flight Terraces beside a perfectly huge Golden Queen.
“Oh, is this F’reya?” I asked, coming up to her.
“Yes, this is my baby.” She smiled and stroked the enormous dragon’s head—which was three times as big as she was.
F’reya snorted softly and nodded at me in greeting, and I nodded back.
“And this must be your own queen,” Elleena said to me. She looked to my left and I saw that L’eesha was standing there, though I hadn’t seen her earlier.
