18

BEFORE HE COULD FIND NAT, WES watched a pillar of flame descend from the sky, arcing like a bolt of fury, filling the air with smoke, blinding him with light. The flames cut a path through the trees, racing toward him as they consumed everything in their path. The heat was so intense his face felt as if it were already burning. Red and orange sparks danced around him, and wisps of flame lapped at his shirt and pants, threatening to stick. It was too late to run, the only option was to fight, and so Wes pushed back against the drakonfire with his own power, managing to deflect enough of it to avoid being burned by the initial strike.

Wes dove for the cover of tall trees, hoping to lose the drakon. There was nothing else he could do. He couldn’t fight the creature with a blade or a gun, and his magic was tapped out for now.

Above him, the creature’s wings made a terrible sound. Torrents of hot air whistled through the trees. Flame spiraled in all directions. He heard an intake of air followed by the sound of a great exhalation as the drakon lit the forest with its flame once more. The fire spread from tree to tree, igniting leaves and branches, sending sparks flying and trees crashing to the ground. The successive bursts lit up the night and the forest floor came alive with flame. A great yellow wave of fire rolled up to a great height and crashed around him.

Nowhere was safe. He had to run.

Wes stumbled over fallen branches and logs. He leapt over jagged rocks, wondering whether Nat was here somewhere, lost amid the flames. He looked for her, but the forest was aflame and she was nowhere to be seen. He cursed himself for letting her fall through the doorway alone.

He ran deeper and deeper into the dark woods, hoping for a reprieve, a moment to catch sight of Nat, but the drakon would not rest. It was crisscrossing the forest, setting everything on fire. The flames drew nearer, and there seemed to be no escape. Wes readied himself for the final blow. The fire approached. He tried to push back against it again, to control it as he had done a moment ago, but nothing happened. In a moment, the drakon would light him up like tinder. He’d be nothing but toast. Burnt toast.

He waited for the death stroke, for the drakon to breathe fire down on him. A moment passed. Nothing. He heard only the beating of his heart, and in the distance the sound of the drakon’s wings.

It was fading. Did the drakon spare me? No. Wes knew better. The creature could have killed him easily, but someone had prevented its strike.

Someone had caught its attention.

“Nat!” he cried.

In the distance, he saw a figure darting between the trees, and went after it. “Nat!” he called again, certain that the drakon was nearly upon her. “Wait!”

He readied his weapon as he ran through the dark forest, following the blaze, the sparkle of lights from the distance that could only be fire from drakonflame. The trees were twisted and ancient, long dead, the bark fossilized into stone. There was no wind, but he felt a chill. The forest was dark, the flames were behind him, and everything was rendered in shades of black and gray, like a charcoal drawing.

There was nothing living in this world, and Wes knew this was the future of their own if Nat was unable to recast the spell.

Another fiery blast came from the north side of the dead forest. She was alone out there. He should have stood his ground and not let his pride get in the way when they were quarreling earlier. He was paying for it now.

“Nat!” he called. “Where are you? Can you hear me?”

Fire lit the sky, washing out the stars and blinding him briefly.

The drakon was close, and he hoped that meant Nat would be as well.

A scream broke the smoky silence—Nat? He ran faster, stumbling over roots and rocks.

The forest was darker now, and he couldn’t see in front of himself. He was lost, alone in a strange, dead world. There were no flickering lights on the horizon.

Where were they?

He saw neither Nat nor the drakon, but when a shadow moved, he saw something else: a hooded figure, not ten steps ahead of him, holding a gleaming blade.

Wes took a step back, careful not to make any noise, his military training allowing him to retreat as silently as if he had never been there.

There was someone else in the forest with them. Someone dangerous. He had to find Nat.