Fear seizes my body, a scream rips from my throat.

I'm in fucking free fall.

This is not how I wanted to die.

Vises clamp around my ribs and over my shoulders, stopping my descent, and my body jerks with whiplash as I'm yanked upward again.

Don't worry Vicious one, I've got you.

I'm clasped in Gaia's claws. My heart pounding in my chest.

She's one of the deadliest dragons in Navarre. Professor Kaori's lesson. What else had he said? The she hadn't agreed to bond this year. She hadn't even been seen in the last 50 years.

Gaia swings me upward and then releases me, sending me flying high above her, and I flail. My stomach drops at the height of her toss, and then I fall for two heartbeats before she rushes up, catching me on her back between her wings.

"Now get in the seat and actually hold on this time, or no one is going to believe that I've actually chosen you," she growls.

"I still can't believe you've chosen me!" I have half a mind to tell her that getting back to the seat isn't as easy as she's implying, but she levels out and his wings catch the air in a gentle glide, cutting the wind resistance. Inch by inch, I crawl up her back until I reach the seat and settle in again. I hold on to her ridges so hard, my hands cramp.

Much better.

I smile. Widely. I have...a dragon. And not just any dragon. I have Targaria.

I sit higher in the seat and look out over the landscape, wind ripping tears from the corners of my eyes. No wonder most riders choose to wear goggles.

There are at least a dozen dragons in the air, each putting their rider through a trial of dips and turns. Reds, oranges, greens, browns, the sky is speckled with color.

We're going to have to put on a show.

"Fantastic." The idea is anything but.

You will not fall. I will not allow it.

Her wings give a mighty beat, and we lurch upward in what feels like a ninety-degree climb, leaving my stomach back at the lower altitude. She crests the top of the snow-dusted peaks, and we hang there for a breath of a second before she twists, diving back down at the same terrifying angle.

It's the most exhilarating moment of my life.

Until she twists again, sending us into a spiral.

My body is wrenched this way and that as she completes turn after turn, pulling us out of the dive only to bank so hard, I swear the land becomes the sky, then repeats it all until my face splits into a grin.

There is nothing like this.

"I think we made our point."

Fine.

She pulls us level, then banks right, starting up the valley that leads to the box canyon of the training fields. The sun is close to setting behind the peaks.

"Why did you choose me?" I have to know, because as soon as we land, there are going to be questions.

Because you are just like me Vicious one.

I suck in a sharp breath at the sight of so many dragons.

There are hundreds gathered along the rocky edges of the mountain slopes behind the bleachers that were erected overnight. Spectators.

And at the bottom of the valley, in the same field I'd walked only a couple of days before, are two lines of dragons facing each other.

They are divided between those still in the quadrant who chose in years past and those who chose today, Gaia tells me.

We are the fifty-seventh bond to enter the fields.

Colonel Grimshaw will be here, on the dais in front of the bleachers. A shiver runs down my spine, I hope he doesn't get to close, there is nothing stopping me from throwing a dagger through his cold black heart.

I would gladly set him alight.

A ferocious roar of celebration goes up among the dragons as we fly in, every head swinging our way, and I know it's in deference to Gaia.

So is the parting of the dragons at the very center of the field, making room for her to land.

Surveying the options for dismount, I scoot over the scales of Gaia's shoulder, Taking in the distance i'm about to jump from.

I launch my self off her back, taking the brunt of the impact with my left leg when I hit the ground.

That's one way to do it.

I can't stop the smile on my face or the joy that stings my eyes at the sight of other first-years standing in front of their dragons. I'm alive, and I'm no longer a cadet. I'm a rider.

Tons of other dragons make their entrances to the flight field.

Dusk falls, and a series of mage lights illuminates the crowd in the bleachers and on the dais. In the very center, right above where the redhead from Parapet is recording roll, sits General Grimshaw and General Sorrengail, dressed in all their military finery, medals and all, lest anyone forget exactly who they are.

And Melgren, the commanding general of all Navarrian forces, has his beady eyes on Gaia in open assessment. His focus flicks toward me, and I suppress a shudder. There's nothing but cold calculation in those eyes.

I approach the roll-keeper at the base of the dais, who's recording bonded pairs before motioning the next rider forward to maintain secrecy of a dragon's full name.

Professor Kaori jumps off the six-foot platform to my left and stares open-mouthed at Gaia, his gaze sweeping over the massive black dragon, memorizing every single detail.

"Is that really-" Commandant Panchek starts, hovering at the edge of the dais with more than a dozen other uniformed, high-ranking officers, all gaping.

All of leadership is stairing at my dragon, open mouthed.

As they should.

Fuck. Them.

The rider ahead finishes, moving out of the way, and the roll-keeper looks up, glancing wide-eyed at Gaia before lowering her shocked gaze to mine and beckoning me forward.

"Anastasia Riorson," she says as she writes in the Book of Riders. She offers me a quick, shaky smile.

"For the record, please tell me the name of the dragon who chose you."

I lift my chin. "Targaria."

Good pronunciation Vicious one, my last rider was appalling.

I smile, I have a dragon.

Gaia grunts in my head.

The woman grins, shaking her head as she writes down his name. "I can't believe she bonded. Anastasia, she's a legend."

I open my mouth to agree-

Yes, I am

Oh. My. God, this dragon.

Just as I start to retort, Violet crash lands onto the field, on the back of the fucking black dragon.

Holy fucking shit

Tairn is being dramatic as usual.

I watch her, slide down his back and limp over to where I stand with the roll keeper.

I grab her immediately, pulling her into a hug, which she returns, although its soft.

No shit, she's hurt.

Gods would you please stay out of my head.

That's very funny.

"I fucking knew it." I smirk, letting her go

"Violet Sorrengail," she says as she writes in the Book of Riders. "Nice to see that you made it." She offers me a quick, shaky smile.

"For the record, please tell me the name of the dragon who chose you."

she lifts her chin. "Tairneanach."

The woman grins, shaking her head as she writes down his name. "I can't believe he bonded. Violet, he's a legend."

Violet opens her mouth, then closes it, pure shock on her face.

"Excuse me?"

"Violet, are you all right?" the roll keeper asks, and everyone around us, including me, leans in.

"Violet?" the roll-keeper repeats. "Do you need a mender?"

She turns back to us. "And Andarnaurram," she says, her voice barely a whisper.

My eyes fly wide. "Both dragons?" she squawks.

Fuck yeah.

She nods.

And all hell breaks loose.

--------------

"Absolutely not!" one general shouts loud enough that I can hear her all the way from the little medical station that's been set up at the end of the bleachers for riders. It's nothing but a row of a dozen tables and some flown-in supplies to tide us over until we can get to the Healer Quadrant, but at least the pain medication is taking effect.

The generals have been screaming at each other for the last half hour, long enough for a chill to settle in the night air and for an instructor I've never met to sew up my cheek, much to my protests.

Unlucky for us, Jack is getting his shoulder examined about a dozen feet away. Violet told me all about her fight.

Jack hasn't quit staring at Tairn across the field.

"How is that?" Professor Kaori asks quietly, tightening the straps around her ankle. There are about a million other questions in his slashing, dark eyes.

"Hurts like hell." The swelling made it nearly impossible to get her boot back on, even with my help, we had to loosening every single lace to its widest position.

"You'll be focused on strengthening your bonds and riding in the next couple of months, so as long as you don't have trouble mounting or dismounting"-his head tilts as he ties off the straps.

"Which, after what I saw, I don't think you will-this sprain should heal before your next round of challenges." Two lines deepen between his brow. "Or I can call Nolon-"

"No. I'll heal."

"If you're sure?" He obviously isn't.

"Every eye in this valley is on me and my dragon-dragons, I can't afford to appear weak." He frowns but nods.

"Do you know who made it out of our squad?" I ask, fear knotting my throat. Please let Ridoc be alive. And Rhiannon. And Sawyer.

"I haven't seen Trina or Tynan," Professor Kaori answers slowly, like he's trying to soften a blow. It doesn't.

"Tynan won't be coming," Vi whispers.

"I see," Professor Kaori murmurs.

"What the hell do you mean you think it needs surgery?" Jack bellows from the left.

"I mean, it looks like the weapon severed a couple of ligaments, but we'll have to get you to the healers to be sure," the other instructor says, his voice infinitely patient as he secures Jack's sling.

Rage mottles his cheeks in the mage light, and he swings his feet over the end of his table and charges toward Violet. "You!"

"I what?"

Professor Kaori's eyebrows jump as he glances between them. "You?" he murmurs.

"Me," Violet answer, keeping her focus on Jack.

But Professor Kaori moves between them, throwing his palm out at Jack. "I wouldn't get any closer to her."

"Hiding behind our instructors now, Sorrengail?" Jack's uninjured fist curls.

"I didn't hide out there, and I'm not hiding here." she raises her chin. "I'm not the one who ran."

Oh shit.

"She doesn't need to hide behind me when she's bonded to the one of the most powerful dragon of your year, and Anastasia here bonded the other one "

Professor Kaori warns Jack, whose eyes narrow on us. "Your orange is a good choice, Barlowe. Baide, right? He's had four other riders before you." Jack nods.

Professor Kaori looks back over his shoulder at the line of dragons. "As aggressive as Baide might be, from the way Tairn's looking at you, he'll have no problem scorching your bones into the earth if you take another step toward his rider."

Jack stares at Violet in disbelief. "You?"

"Me."

He shakes his head, and the look in his eyes transforms from shock, to envy, to fear as he pivots toward the professor. "I don't know what she told you about what happened out there-"

"Nothing." The instructor folds his arms across his chest. "Is there something I need to know?"

Jack pales, going white as a sheet in the mage light as another injured first-year hobbles over, blood streaming from his thigh and torso.

"Everyone who needs to know already knows."

"Guess we're done for the night," Kaori says as a line of dragons flies in, only visible by their silhouettes in the darkness. "The senior riders are back. You two should return to your dragons."

Jack huffs and marches off across the field.

"I'm gonna go find my brother."

I turn and stalk away from the healer stand.

--------------

"Stas!" I'm swept up into a hug, Xaden holding onto me so tightly, I think he thinks I'll disappear if he lets go.

"You're alive." He lets out a fucking massive breath

"I'm alive." I think I need to remind myself too.

"I need to tell you something, bad." Xaden runs a hand through his hair before taking a deep breath.

"I'm tethered to Violet." He says, looking me dead in the eye.

Oh shit.

"Tairn is..."

"Yes"

"Sgaeyl just got a fuck ton more scary." That makes him smile.

"Did you bond that massive blue?" He blurts out, staring up at Gaia.

Tell him to stop looking at me like that before I scorch him.

Please don't.

I can't promise anything.

"Yes, and she said to stop looking at her like that or she's gonna burn you." I shrug

"She sounds just like you- "

He stops mid sentence, his gaze surveying the blood covering my body. "Whose fucking blood is that."

I smirk, "Not mine."

"Are they alive?" Xaden asks, raising a brow.

"No." I grin.

"That's our fucking terrifying girl" Bodhi says, popping up out of nowhere, Garrick at his side, and suddenly i'm swept into a lung crushing hug, but I don't mind.

It feels like home.

A crash sounds from the middle of the flight field.

I pull away. "Is that..."

"Yes," Xaden answers, his voice blank as he stares up at Codagh, hatred burning in his gaze.

As he should. Gaia chuffs. Codagh is an asshole.

I make out the patchy holes in his battle-scarred wings as he comes closer, his golden gaze focused on Tairn in a way that makes me nauseous. He growls, low in his throat, turning those sinister eyes on Violet.

Tairn rumbles his own growl, stepping forward, protecting Violet. There's zero doubt she's the subject of both disgruntled snarls.

She turns around and looking at me and Xaden across the field.

"Rhi!" I shout, spotting Rhiannon in the mob and limping her way.

"Guys!" She crushes us into a hug, pulling away when Violet winces "What happened?"

"Tynan's sword."

Suddenly snatched off my feet by Ridoc, who spins me around, my feet flying out in front of me.

"Look who rode in on the baddest motherfucker around!" He shouts, smiling.

"Are you all right? Who did you guys bond?"

"The Green Daggertail!" Rhiannon grins. "Feirge. And it was just... easy." She sighs. "I saw her and just knew."

"Aotrom," Ridoc says with pride. "Brown Swordtail."

"Sliseag!" Sawyer throws his arms around Rhiannon's and Ridoc's shoulders. "Red Swordtail!" We all cheer, and I'm swept into his hug next.

Out of all of us, I'm happiest for him, for all he's had to endure to get here.

"Trina?" Violet ask as he lets me go.

One by one, they shake their heads, looking to the others for answers.

"I mean...there's a possibility she's just unbonded, right?"

Sawyer shakes his head, sorrow slackening his shoulders. "I saw her fall from the back of an Orange Clubtail." My heart sinks, I didn't even like her but somehow it makes me sad.

"Tynan?" Ridoc asks.

"Tairn killed him," Violet says softly. "

In his defense, Tynan had already run me through once." She gestures to the wound on her arm. "And he was trying to -"

"He tried what?"

Violet is spun around by the shoulders and yanked against Dains chest. Ew. My

"Damn it. Violet. Just...damn. You're hurt." He says, assessing her injuries.

"I'm fine, but we're all that's left of our squad's first years."

Dain's gaze rises to look at the us, and he nods. "Five out of ten. That's"-his jaw ticks once- "to be expected. The dragons are currently holding a meeting of the Empyrean-their leadership. Stay here until they return," he says to us.

"You come with me."

Violet walks away with Dain, I scan the crowd looking for a certain blonde man.

There he is.

Oh. My. God just kiss him already.

This dragon is going to be the death of me.

"I'll be back." I don't wait for their response before I turn, sprinting into his open arms.

"Thank Zihnal you're ok" Liam says, his voice muffled into my hair.

I bury myself deeper into his chest, savouring his warmth.

Before I can speak a loud voice bellows through the flight field.

We turn, as General Melgren moves toward the front of the dais, his uniform dripping in medals. A hush falls over the crowd as Melgren angles his hands in front of his face.

"Codagh has relayed that the dragons have spoken regarding the Sorrengail girl." Lesser magic allows his voice to magically amplify over the field for all to hear.

"While tradition has shown us that there is one rider for every dragon, there has never been a case of two dragons selecting the same rider, and therefore there is no dragon law against it," he declares. "While we riders may not feel as though this is...equitable"-his tone implies that he's one of them-"dragons make their own laws. Both Tairn and..." He looks over his shoulder and his aide rushes forward to whisper in his ear. "Andarna have chosen Violet Sorrengail, and so their choice stands."

The crowd murmurs, but my shoulders sag in acute relief.

General Sorrengail steps forward and makes the same gesture with her hands to project her voice, but I can't concentrate on what she's saying as she closes out the formal portion of the Threshing ceremony, promising the unbonded riders another chance next year. If they don't manage to kill one of us while our bonds are weak in the next few months and try to bond our dragons themselves.

I belong to Gaia.

And I you, little one.

The thought graces my face with a smile.

"Welcome to a family that knows no boundaries, no limits, and no end," my mother finishes, and a cheer resounds around the field. "Riders, step forward."

I look left and right in confusion, but so does every other rider.

Five steps or so. Gaia says.

I take them.

"Dragons, it is our honor as always," the General calls out. "Now we celebrate!"

Heat blasts my back, and I hiss in pain as riders on both sides of me cry out. My back feels like it's on fucking fire, and yet everyone across the field is cheering raucously, some of them racing our way.

Other riders are caught up in embraces.

You'll like it, Gaia promises.

It's unique.

The pain fades to a dull ache, and I glance over my shoulder. I can't see anything,

Where is it?

Lift the back of your shirt.

I nod, the crisp October air nips at the base of my back.

Suddenly, my vision isn't mine. I'm looking at my own back through... Gaia's eyes. My back has a dragon head and wings, it wraps around to my left side and trails down my leg, although I can't see it, it shimmers a stunning navy blue.

"It's beautiful," I whisper. I'm marked by her magic as a rider now, as her rider.

I know. Gaia chuffs, standing proudly.

I blink, and my vision is mine again.

"Holy shit, that's.." Liam stands behind me, open mouthed in shock "That's fucking amazing."

"Where's yours?" I ask turning around to face him, unable to keep my smile at bay. "My back." He turns, raising his shirt.

"Wow."

It's not just his relic that has me stunned, it's his toned back too.

Gosh, get over yourself.

Liam looks at me for a moment, his eyes softening on my smile and suddenly i'm swept into a kiss.

After years, Liam is finally kissing me.

His lips are soft, but the kiss is firm, desperate even, it makes delight race up my spine. My hands are in his soft hair, his arms wrapping around my back.

It's perfect.

He pulls away, resting his forehead against mine.

"I've wanted to do that for so fucking long."

---------------





A/N

Who should her second LI be, I can't decide

also sorry that I can't update that regularly