It was all the warning that K’lior had as remnants of the clump, only partly charred, continued to fall toward him. With a move that he later couldn’t explain, he and Rineth were suddenly twenty meters lower in the sky, the great bronze climbing straight up, jaws agape with vengeful flame and an air-shattering bellow, engulfing the Thread in a ball of fire.

And then, as suddenly, they were flying level once more, K’lior trying to regain his composure and sending a silent salute to F’dan.

More Thread, Rineth warned him. K’lior turned as he caught sight of a blur of bronze wheeling beside him—H’nez had decided to join the fray.

His decision was ill-timed as scant seconds later, Ginirth bellowed in pain and disappeared, between.

K’rall says he did not send him, Rineth relayed. K’lior dismissed this with a grimace. There was Thread to fight, matters of discipline would come after.

The bellow of pain from the dragon bursting into the morning sky above Fort was mortal and Fiona knew it even as the blue plummeted toward the ground.

Talenth! Fiona shrieked in her mind as she rushed toward the falling pair, even before she could register that her queen had already left her post, was diving beneath the blue, pushing up against him, slowing his fall.

The rider tumbled off and, as he fell, Fiona could see that the entire left half of his back was one giant open wound, with ribs severed and organs dripping with the heat of the Thread’s voraciousness. The Thread itself was nothing more than dusty between-seared crusty remnants of clotted blood. The wound was fatal but Fiona rushed toward the falling rider all the same.

Just as she reached him, another dragon burst into the sky above, a bronze creeling horribly, its left wingtip shredded.

Fiona needed no words to direct Talenth to the bronze’s aid; the blue was already close enough to the ground that Talenth could easily roll him off her back.

The blue rider landed in her arms facing her.

“F’dan!” Fiona cried. He was dead.

A grief-filled cry from Ridorth distracted her. Ridorth, stay!

Fiona reached out to Talenth and, together, they held on to the blue, forcing him to remain as Fiona cried for help, dragging F’dan toward his mate as quickly as she could. A moment later a pair of hands grabbed his feet and her movement became easier.

“Get him to Ridorth,” Fiona begged through her heaving breaths.

Hold him! Fiona ordered Talenth. She was dimly aware of someone shouting at her, of another dragon crying in pain, but her whole focus was on the distance between her and blue Ridorth, who trembled wild-eyed at her approach.

It’s okay, Fiona assured him, I just want you to take F’dan with you.

Ridorth calmed and lowered himself as close to the ground as possible.