Andi must’ve seen his gaze wander. “He’ll be fine as long as we get to the transport before the cold gets him first.” Her eyes pleaded with him not to put voice to the thought that was in both their minds.

If they could get him to the transport in time. Which was looking less and less likely by the minute. Lon’s backpack, somehow, was still squirming, Havoc hissing furiously inside.

The only casualty Dex had hoped for had survived.

Dex turned to see the two remaining members of Klarisa’s crew running toward them. But before they’d taken more than a few steps, the ice splintered in front of them and a new hole formed, sucking the two men below the surface. Their screams were cut short as the dragon, twice the size of the Marauder, shot through the jagged hole and hundreds of feet into the sky, its long body whipping through the air effortlessly. It looked as if it were made from ice crystals, carefully arranged into a skeletal structure, and Dex was momentarily struck by the harsh beauty of the creature.

Then transparent wings unfurled from its back, making the beast arc through the sky. It looked graceful, but Dex knew that beautiful things were often the most deadly. Its body did a dance midair, its bones clinking together as it turned and nose-dived downward, its mouth yawning open, razor-sharp teeth glinting in the fading light of the approaching storm.

Dex didn’t plan on becoming monster food tonight. But it was Andi who was the first to move.

“To the ship, now!” she roared, pulling Lon with her. Klarisa and Dex followed in their wake just as the beast landed behind them.

Dex jumped over a crack that split the ice a few feet wide. Once clearing the rift, he pointed his gun behind him, shooting at random, but even when his shots met their mark, they didn’t slow the beast. It was as if there was nothing to penetrate, all its organs protected fiercely by its bone-work scales.

The transport ship slowly came into view. A shard of ice shot through the air, narrowly missing him.

It struck a different target instead.

Klarisa screamed and fell to the ground, blood quickly drenching the snow.

“No!” Dex dropped to his knees beside his old friend, staring at the ice shard embedded in her stomach. Klarisa looked up at him through her helmet, eyes full of pain, but determined.

“Save yourself,” she whispered. “Get to the ice pub.”

“Dex, come on!” Andi yelled, hurtling past him, Lon close behind.

“Back to the stars, Guardian,” Dex choked out, reciting the words he’d said to fallen friends before. Klarisa’s eyes closed for the last time just as the ground trembled again.

With a final glance at her still face, Dex ran for his life. The ship was just a few paces ahead, but the dragon was closer.