Thisbe blew out a frustrated breath. “Look. There’s a chance I can hurt the Revinir with my fire magic if I can find a spot where her scales are thin. But I highly doubt I can totally destroy her with the magic I’ve got right now. Obviously the boom spell is powerful, and it works great on people and creatures our size. But I don’t think it will work on the Revinir now that she’s a huge half dragon. It might not affect her at all! It’s like she’s got some sort of spell-repellent ability or something. Samheed told me that none of our spells affected her, not even the triple heart attack. The components just bounced off.”

“We definitely don’t want anyone to go there until we know we can destroy her,” said Florence. “That would be foolish. You’re right that we need totally different ammunition than what we have now. But it’s going to take some time to make spells that are much stronger than what we’ve used in the past. We need things we haven’t thought to try before.” She scratched her ebony-colored head and shifted the quiver of arrows on her back. “I’m having trouble thinking of what could work on her, though. The way you describe her is frightening. I’m . . . not sure we can fight her and win. Not at this point.” She hesitated, then looked earnestly at Thisbe. “I hate that you are so determined to go, and in such a hurry. I just . . . I don’t recommend it.”

“I have to go,” said Thisbe, eyes flaring, scales standing up, and a tiny plume of smoke coming from her nostrils. It was a strange sight—the smoke only seemed to happen when Thisbe felt an especially strong sense of impending danger or urgency about the future. “So I need your help. Don’t give up on me!”

Florence studied her. “I won’t stop you,” she said grimly. “Besides, you’re of age—you can do what you want. And believe me, I’m excited about getting rid of that monster once and for all. Even if no one else will say it out loud, I know Artimé is in danger as long as she’s alive. She definitely knows where to find us if she wants to. It’s imperative that we take her out of power. Permanently this time. I just hate that you think you’re the one who’s got to do it.”

“I’m the best equipped. And the only one who is anxious to do it.”

“True.” But Florence still looked troubled. “I’m going to try to delay your trip until I feel good about it, though. And I’m nowhere near that point yet.”

“I guess that’s fair.” Somewhat reassured, Thisbe glanced at Ibrahim and Clementi. “Do you have any ideas about how to beat her?”