Alura sprinted toward her dragon, letting Gemina grasp her in her claws and then send her sailing backward over Gemina’s head. It was what they had practiced over and over again. There was no time for landing and mounting. The battle was ahead.

The rest of their team took off at a sprint. Kerrigan felt the bond strengthen as Tieran grabbed her and threw her backward. She landed into a crouch on his back, steady as an acrobat. A slow smile came to her face. She didn’t care what her part in this was; she was just glad that the last year hadn’t been a waste.

Then, they were soaring west, away from Lethbridge. The city itself was two tier—one level surrounded by the enormous stone wall that protected the House of Shadows and an exposed lower level. Most of the lower level had been decimated by the invading forces, but what still stood housed excess soldiers. On the northern side of the city was a small river that nearly drained during the cold months and filled to flooding as the snow melt ran off of the Vert Mountains. Right now, it ran at a trickle, as the snow wouldn’t melt this far north for at least another month or two. But it was still wide enough to accommodate a few ships.

As they moved easily into formation with Alura at the lead, Fordham off her right wing, and Kerrigan off of his wing with Audria and Roake on the left, Kerrigan could see precisely what Alura had in mind.

Kerrigan was so caught up in where they were going that she didn’t notice what was going on below until an arrow whizzed past her. She gasped and veered slightly out of formation.

“Shield up,” Alura commanded.

Kerrigan fumbled for a second, disoriented. Then, she felt the gentle pull of Tieran’s reassurance.

Breathe. It’s one arrow. We can take them out.

She nodded, sending a tug back, and then dipped into her well of magic. It was still low compared to normal but enough to hold up a magic shield as they flew near their troops. Another arrow bounced harmlessly off of her shield, but she shuddered at the feel of it. The tips had been dipped in something that made her skin crawl. She could practically taste it.

Audria cursed violently, and Kerrigan glanced over to see her shield had dropped. “What the hell was that?”

“Oleander-tipped arrows,” Fordham told them. “I forgot we still had those. They’ve been banned within our halls since I’ve been fighting. If the arrow doesn’t kill you, the poison will burn out your magic.”

Kerrigan’s eyes widened. “Holy gods! What else do they have that you forgot about?”

He glanced back at her, his face hard. “Let’s not find out.”