Chapter 2

The fire-wing clan left the Sky Palace before sunset.

No one spoke until we reached the first cloud bridge. Then my cousin Rian kicked a stone over the edge.

"Let us turn around," he said. "We can take the palace before Cassian's riders gather."

Several warriors raised their weapons.

"He insulted the whole clan."

"He used our soldiers to win his throne."

"Give the order, Lady Ayla. We will make him regret touching you."

I stopped at the end of the bridge.

"Put your weapons away."

Rian stared at me. "He just broke the blood contract in front of every ruler in the seven cities."

"And I broke it first."

"That does not mean we forgive him."

"I don't forgive him either."

My voice carried across the bridge. The warriors lowered their blades, but anger still burned in their faces.

I had seen this before.

In my first life, I had stood in that same palace and exposed Seren as an Abyss spy. She had swallowed poison before the guards could seize her. Cassian had held her dead body and wept as if the world had ended.

I thought he would understand why I acted.

I thought he would thank me for saving him.

Instead, he looked at me as if I had murdered the woman he loved.

"You killed Seren," he had said.

"She was an Abyss spy."

"You were jealous."

He never listened after that.

For years, he pretended to forgive me. He invited my clan to the capital, asked for our troops, and took our supplies. Then, when his throne was secure, he accused us of working with the Abyss.

His soldiers came at dawn.

They dragged my father from his bed. They burned the children in the lower caves. Old warriors were cut down where they stood. The mountain floor ran red while my people screamed for help.

I had been chained beside the main gate.

My father broke free and crawled to Cassian on his knees.

"Please," he begged. "Take everything I have, but spare my daughter."

Cassian stepped on his chest.

"This is what Ayla owes Seren."

Then he drew his sword and cut off my father's head.

I still remembered the sound of it hitting the stone.

That was why I would not waste my clan's strength on a broken engagement.

"The Abyss is still watching us," I told the warriors. "Cassian is not our only enemy. If we fight him now, we leave our borders open."

Rian clenched his fists. "So we do nothing?"

"We get stronger."

We reached our volcanic homeland that night. The clan elders gathered in the war hall, and I placed the old black book on the table.

"The Emberheart Rite," I said. "We are going to use it."

The elders went silent.

My father, Lord Garrick Firewing, touched the cracked cover. "That rite has not been attempted in four hundred years."

"Because it can burn out the heart of anyone who fails."

"It could kill half the clan."

"It could also double our strength."

The hall erupted with arguments. Some elders called it reckless. Others said we should wait for a safer method.

I opened the book.

"We waited for Cassian to protect us. We gave him our best weapons and trusted his promises. I will not make that mistake again."

Before anyone could answer, a horn sounded outside.

A rider entered wearing the dark blue cloak of the northern watch.

He removed his helmet, revealing a broad-shouldered man with black hair and a scar across his cheek.

"Lady Ayla," he said. "I am Leon, captain of the northern dragon riders."

I knew him. Leon had fought beside us during the Black Ridge campaign, though he had rarely spoken in council.

"What brings you here?" I asked.

He placed a stack of sealed reports on the table.

"Cassian has ordered every city to send laborers and supplies to the capital. He is building a palace in the upper clouds for Seren. Anyone who refuses will lose their land."

Rian cursed.

Leon looked at me. "The cities are angry, but they are afraid. If this continues, Cassian will have nothing left to rule except an empty throne."

"You came to warn me?"

"I came because the Abyss has been quiet for too long."

His hand tightened around his helmet.

"And because I owe you more than you know."

I frowned.

"During the siege at Black Ridge, three arrows were aimed at your back. I knocked them away."

I remembered the arrows. I had thought the wind had shifted.

"During the Frost Pass battle, someone cut the rope on your bridge. I caught it before you fell."

I had believed one of my own soldiers saved me.

Leon gave a short shrug. "You were busy saving everyone else. I never saw a reason to interrupt."

For the first time since returning to the past, I had no answer.

I closed the book.

"Prepare the northern riders. If the Abyss moves, I want warning before they cross our border."

Leon nodded. "And the Emberheart Rite?"

"I start tonight."

The rite took place inside the deepest volcanic chamber.

The elders drew a circle of fire around me. I cut my palm and pressed it to the stone. Heat rushed through my arm, then struck my chest like a hammer.

My knees hit the ground.

"Stop!" my father shouted from beyond the circle.

I forced myself upright.

The flames climbed over my shoulders. My ribs felt as if they were splitting apart. I could have stepped out and lived with my old strength.

Instead, I stayed.

By dawn, the fire had turned white.

When I opened my eyes, every warrior in the chamber was kneeling.

Three months later, our training grounds shook under the force of new dragon flame.

That was when the palace bells rang.

A royal carriage stopped outside the gate.

Cassian stepped down, followed by servants carrying a silver chest and a sealed invitation.

He smiled as if he had never insulted me.

"Ayla," he said. "I have come to make peace."

I took the invitation from his hand.

Then I set it on fire.