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Back The Endless Skies Save as PDF
Chapters (57)
  1. Copyright Notice
  2. Dedication
  3. Map
  4. PROLOGUE
  5. 1
  6. 2
  7. 3
  8. 4
  9. 5
  10. 6
  11. 7
  12. 8
  13. 9
  14. 10
  15. 11
  16. 12
  17. 13
  18. 14
  19. 15
  20. 16
  21. 17
  22. 18
  23. 19
  24. 20
  25. 21
  26. 22
  27. 23
  28. 24
  29. 25
  30. 26
  31. 27
  32. 28
  33. 29
  34. 30
  35. 31
  36. 32
  37. 33
  38. 34
  39. 35
  40. 36
  41. 37
  42. 38
  43. 39
  44. 40
  45. 41
  46. 42
  47. 43
  48. 44
  49. 45
  50. 46
  51. 47
  52. 48
  53. EPILOGUE
  54. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
  55. Also by Shannon Price
  56. ABOUT THE AUTHOR
  57. Newsletter Sign-up

The waters churn more violently as I approach Balmora. At the Cliffs, I fly into the most shadowed part of the rocky surface and swing my body upward. Here and there, my longest feathers brush on stone, but I keep going. Cresting the ridge, I fly low and try to stay hidden as much as I can, but the land is covered only by sparse sea grasses and weeds. Still, I don’t want to gain any height. My magic could start to fail any second.…

It comes quickly, like air being sucked from my lungs. I use the last moments to drop my bag from my jaws and tuck my body into a roll. I tumble into the grasses, a rock embedded in the ground colliding with my hip as I do, and I let out a sharp yelp as I finally come to a stop.

I lie there for a minute, panting. I’ve done it. I’ve made it to Balmora.

Save for losing my magic, everything feels right. The dirt under my elbows is just dirt. A strange, droning sound that I can’t place carries from the mountains to the north, but closer to me, the birds and insects sound the same here as on the Heliana. I welcome everything that feels familiar.

I get up and dust myself off, then retrieve my bag. The Heliana is a gray blur over the sea, too far for me to make out any of her buildings. I have left everything I’ve known behind, and I can’t turn back. I’ve made my own mission: tell the teams about Tabrol, and help them find the cure before it is too late.

“Hang on, little prince,” I whisper. “Just hang on.”

The teams have a day’s journey ahead of me, but if I press forward as long as I physically can and minimize my sleep, I may just have a chance of finding one. Any of the warrior teams would do, but I’d be lying to myself if I said I didn’t have my heart set on one in particular.

Seth would look after me, as he always did. As for Ox and Callen … I’d be happy to be beside either of them.

Skies, I wonder if they’ve talked about me. They’d have to talk about something when taking breaks or resting for the night. If I came up at all, what would they say? Have they realized that they have feelings for the same person?

Enough, I tell myself. It doesn’t matter if they’ve talked about me. That is the last thing I’ll bring up when I find them—that is, if I find them.

My heart can wait. My fears about deserting—and my dream of becoming a warrior—can wait. I turn for the east and don’t look back.

17

SHIRENE

It’s silence that does it.