The ship drops, and Olilly lets out an involuntary cry as the floor drops beneath them, her stomach flying up as both Kirin’s and Nym’ellia’s hands reach out to steady her. And then the ship’s free fall gives way to an abrupt, cushioned rise as the craft thrusts forward then tilts upward, the dark Vo Mountains visible in the distance. A Shadow moon hangs above the menacing landscape, the undulating sea of Shadow coursing over the entire span of the Vo River as dragons continue to pour out of the mountain range.

A sense of surreality sweeps through Olilly, her legs turning watery. Her eyes light on a plate of Xishlon heart cookies upended on the floor, frosted violet flowers scattered around the sweets.

A scream of protest rises in her throat, threatening to loosen.

The beautiful festival. Purple everywhere. Sweet Kirin washed in lavender moonlight as he leaned in to press his lips gently to hers in that lovely first kiss for the both of them. His besotted, flustered smile afterward as their fingers laced together even more tightly in unspoken joy and hope for a better future.

Destroyed.

All of it destroyed.

Olilly presses her face to the glass of the circular window and takes in the gray world, her friends’ hands bracingly on her back as the ship pivots and the city of Voloi momentarily comes back into view. Explosions of silvery-gray fire are erupting on every tier as columns of smoke rise. And the Wyvernguard...

Olilly pulls in a sharp breath.

Its South Island is gone, only a smoking char remaining, a battle raging around the North Island, which is encased in some kind of cottony webbing.

“I can’t live under the Mages again,” Olilly rasps, desperate to shut out this new reality. Desperate to go back a few hours to her lovely Xishlon world.

Nym’ellia grabs her hand as Kirin’s arm comes around her shoulders.

“We’ll fight them,” Nym’ellia vows, holding tight to Olilly.

Olilly shakes her head. “They’ll kill us all. We’re nothing but evil creatures to them.” Panic mounting, she reaches up to touch her mutilated ear, all of it rushing back. The mob of Mages yelling vicious taunts as they held her down and cut the tips from her ears.

Rockbat! Urisk whore!

Mage land for the Mages!

Olilly’s whole body trembles as she clings to her ear and watches the city erupt with explosions of dark flame.

A large, pale dragon flashes past, white as the Noi goddess Vo, flying due south toward the chaos.

Olilly gives an inward start as she watches the dragon expeditiously take out broken dragons with blast after blast of vermilion flame as it soars over the river at incredible speed, dodging streaks of Shadowfire. Olilly’s brow creases as she finds herself desperately wishing that dragon had a powerful Noi soldier on its back.

A question bursts into her mind.