Page 80 of Queen’s Gambit

‘You have to get to Tivalaran first. The lack of wind will be the problem,’ Cinared chimed in, and I shot a look at my dragon.

‘Problem? I say it’s a blessing. I can’t imagine this transfer with even a faint breeze,’ I said, and a deep rumble covered my words as his irritation flashed in my mind.

‘No wind to blow the sails. Your men still have to leave the island, Reynard.’ He was right. Fuck, he was right. My gaze drifted to the Wind Masters’ galleons as they sailed away, now empty of their human cargo.

Their sails were filled with the magic of their fae captain, but the smugglers had nothing.

‘Please fly down to the biggest ship. I need to talk to Ivar,’ I requested, and Cinared swooped down. His wing muscles bunched, straining to hover above the surface of the water.

‘Ivar, we need oars,’ I shouted, pointing to the mast. ‘Send some men to the island.’

I didn’t know if Ivar heard me as Cinared shot upward, levelling out at a more comfortable height.

You should have told me that’s what you wanted. There’s a better way than exhausting your men, he scolded me, but I wasn’t in the mood for his teasing.

If you have an idea, speak. I snapped, and the beast beneath me blew out a plume of smoke.

Vahin is a storm dragon. It’s time he earned his keep.

There was a difference between knowing your bonded dragon was a primordial power and understanding exactly what that power could do.

Fine, ask him if he’ll help.

Cinared went quiet. In less than a heartbeat, the entire island appeared to move, dragons rising into the sky. Thirty prime beings, a terrifying force, filled the clouds with all the colours of a rainbow.

Before them flew Vahin, his black scales flaring with vivid blue lightning.

This will be fun. Cinared’s thoughts radiated his deep pleasure. And I didn’t know which worried me more—that he was so excited about this show of power or that I was curious about my dragon’s abilities.

I could burn the world to ash. Wiosna’s volcano couldn’t touch you because my fire burns hotter. I am the eternal flame that ignited as the first whispers of Aether breathed life into this world.

He showed me. Magic swirled across a barren rock, heating the surface until it softened and melted. Flames erupted, the colours vibrant as they twisted into wondrous shapes. Then, finally, a crimson form stepped out of the inferno. Cinared, his scales as brilliant as the flames, fuelled the fire that reshaped the world. Then the blaze died, and his mind calmed.

You bonded the inferno, Kingling. That flame burns in your soul; that’s why I chose you. Sanika… Only life can tame destruction.

Maybe I should send you to Tangra. You could burn this plague from my shores, I thought, still reeling from the vision he’d shown me.

That was the time of creation. The Aether that fuelled those flames is now bound to this world. I can command its power, but I doubt you’d survive the consequences, he replied.

Yet, you called Vahin to raise a storm. As if on command, the black clouds gathered over the ships, and the wind strengthened.

You think this is the full extent of his power? His laughter reverberated across the sky, fusing with the crackling lightning. Wind filled the sails and propelled the small armada away from the island.

We chased them while the dragons of Ozar fed power to the storm.

Tivalaran’s shores emerged on the horizon—high, grey cliffs, shallows full of treacherous reefs, and a system of caves no one could map. No one except pirates and the Dark Brotherhood.

As our ships converged on the coast, fire burst from Cinared’s wings, filling the air with smoke.

I can’t burn the world for you, Reynard, but there is one place I will turn into a pool of molten lava, he said, turning his head toward Tivala’s castle.

I smiled in total agreement with my dragon.