1
Tamri rode the scarlet dragon into the storm. Watermight pulsed in her veins, and the leather safety harness cut deep grooves into her palms. Rook’s wings spread wide on either side, dark-red feathers fluttering in the wind. His long neck arched beneath her, bobbing in time with the churn of his wings and the beat of her heart.
Heavy raindrops skittered across Rook’s scales and dampened Tamri’s cheeks. She poured Watermight from her fingertips and stretched it along the bones of Rook’s wings. The silvery-white magic strengthened his muscles and supported his joints as he fought the storm.
The loss of the icy power reminded Tamri her body was still weak. She gritted her teeth, holding tighter to the harness. She’d finally convinced the Fire Queen she was healthy enough for scouting missions. She wouldn’t let a little storm slow her down.
Zorya, a large golden female dragon with black-tipped wings, flew to their left. Melloch rode her today. Rain coated the Soolen Waterworker’s spectacles, and his long black hair whipped around his face, freed from its leather tie. He followed Tamri’s lead, using his Watermight to strengthen Zorya’s wings.
The sea below roiled, white caps dancing across the waves. The weather had turned when they were only halfway through their patrol, and they still had a long flight ahead of them. Tamri didn’t mind. She had been confined to her bed for weeks after the attack on Sharoth Harbor. She’d feared that Dara, Heath, and Gramma Teall would never let her fly again.
A sliver of shoreline appeared ahead, its rocks shiny with seawater and rain. That should be Caraway Island, one of a dozen scattered landmasses making up the East Isles archipelago.
Tamri took her Firestick from her pocket, fingers warming as she touched the glowing knob embossed with a raised dragonfly at the end. She signaled to Melloch in case he couldn’t see the landmark through the mist. They needed to inspect Caraway Island quickly and return to headquarters before the storm grew worse.
Melloch acknowledged her with a quick wave then clung tighter to Zorya’s safety harness. The Soolen was a skilled Waterworker and a capable scholar, but he wasn’t used to flying.
Tamri twitched the Watermight lining Rook’s joints, and the dragon folded his wings against his long, scaled body and dove. They streaked toward the island, faster and faster, the wind becoming a roar. Tamri grinned, her heart racing. The furious rush of flight filled her up like a magical substance and made her feel as free as the storm itself.
As Rook soared past the outer spur of Caraway Island, Tamri scanned the rocky landmass for signs of thunderbirds or Pendarkan Waterworkers. Tiny green sprouts were beginning to appear among the rocks on Caraway Island, evidence spring was finally on its way. It should be warmer here by now. Soole was as far south as Tamri’s native Pendark, and it was past time for the heat to return.
Stormy weather made everyone nervous. It had heralded the thunderbird attacks on Sharoth. The creatures hadn’t struck again since their queen was thrown back from the Soolen capital, but Tamri and her friends couldn’t relax whenever dark clouds blotted out the sky.
Tamri and Rook soared along the island’s eastern coastline, searching for campfires or shelters that might indicate Khrillin’s goons were lurking. The Waterlord King of Pendark had suffered a catastrophic defeat after trying to invade Sharoth a month ago, but he’d seen the Lightning in action too. He’d want to steal the incredible new power. The Fire Queen had moved their base of operations from the Soolen capital to Starry Cove, the largest settlement in the East Isles, as a precaution. If Khrillin tried to reach the Lightning, they would stand in his way.
Caraway Island looked deserted, all sparse rocks jutting from the sea and sprigs of green emerging from sandy soil. Tamri was about to signal to Melloch and Zorya to head for home when a flicker of white caught her eye.
She leaned forward over Rook’s shoulder, scanning the ground. It could be a bit of seafoam the storm had tossed up, but she needed to know for sure.
Another flicker. Something was moving down by the water’s edge. They flew closer, and Tamri’s stomach gave a nasty lurch. A large storm-gray bird was perched on the rocks by the waterline. White flecked its wings, and a tall white crest rose from its head—a thunderbird.
The creature looked up. Cruel eyes flashed in the half-light of the storm, and blood dripped from the end of its curved beak. The thunderbird crouched lower over a bloody mess on the rocks and dug into it, ripping off chunks of flesh. The carcass had a long, slick hide clearly meant for gliding through the water.
“It’s an animal,” Tamri said, relief flooding her veins. “Probably a sea gorlion or something. It’s okay.”
Rook snorted and flew in a wide circle above the thunderbird and its prey for a better look, anyway. Tamri had seen enough. Thunderbirds were supposed to eat animals—fish, sea mammals, even little desert deer. They only needed to worry if the thunderbirds attacked people. That would mean they were being controlled again—obeying their queen.
The queen of the Thunderbirds was a Lightning dragon, a previously unknown variety of true dragon. Her minions had terrorized the Soolen coast for months, then she’d tried to blast Sharoth right off the map. Tamri had hampered the dragon’s efforts to destroy the city and even controlled her for a few heady moments. But then the dragon’s electric power, her overwhelming presence, had consumed Tamri so completely she’d struggled to remember her own name.
Dara had joined the battle and hurled the Lightning dragon back out to sea, defeating it soundly. But weeks later, Tamri couldn’t shake the experience. The dragon haunted her dreams—vast silver wings, creaky scales, and spines rising from a broad silver back. Her tail ended in a bristling ball of spikes, and when her enormous jaws opened, purple-white Lightning jittered from tooth to tooth. Tamri could still feel the articulated wings as if they were her own—and the utter confidence of a creature that believed it deserved to rule the world. Tamri was the dragon in her dreams, with thunder in her veins and the little world cowering beneath her wings.
She’d hoped riding Rook again would chase the images from her brain, but the churn of his powerful wings and the storm wind on her face only brought the encounter back more vividly. The Lightning dragon had returned to Thunderbird Island, the easternmost of the East Isles, and no one had laid eyes on it in a month. Had it recovered from its loss? Was it preparing another strike? No one believed it was gone for good any more than they thought the Waterlord King was vanquished. Their biggest concern was whether Khrillin or the Lightning dragon would make the next move.
Tamri had suggested to Dara that they try using the Lightning to control the dragon. It had to be possible, if she’d managed it even for a few seconds. The prospect of mastering such a skill filled Tamri with an eagerness she didn’t dare voice. But Dara had committed to sealing up the Lightning. She wanted to bury the magical substance and chain the dragon back in its chasm.
Such a waste. Tamri had learned so much already, and she wanted to go further. She wanted to experience that fathomless confidence again. She wanted to feel the Lightning jittering in her veins and scrambling her senses. There had to be a way around the dangers Dara was so worried about.
Down on the island, the thunderbird finished its meal and snapped its beak, spattering blood and viscera across the rocks. Tamri searched its eyes for any sign of the Lightning, any hint it was being controlled. But it was just a bird.