GOLDEN DAYS |JASON GRACE| {1}

XIX

[KYRA]

KYRA TUMBLED THROUGH THE SKY. Far below she saw city lights glimmering in the early dawn, and several hundred yards away, the body of the bronze dragon spinning out of control, its wings limp, fire flickering in its mouth like a badly wired lightbulb.

A body shot past her—Leo, screaming and frantically grabbing at the clouds. "Not coooooool!" She tried to call to him, but he was already too far below.

Somewhere above her, Jason yelled, "Kyra, level out! Extend your arms and legs!"

It was hard to control her fear, but she did what he said and regained some balance. She fell spread-eagle like a skydiver, the wind underneath her like a solid block of ice. Then Jason was there, wrapping his arms around her waist.

Thank the Gods, Kyra thought, But what about the other two?

"We have to get Leo and Piper!" She shouted at him,

Their fall slowed as Jason controlled the winds, but they still lurched up and down like the winds didn't want to cooperate, "Gonna get rough," Jason warned. "Hold on!"

Kyra locked her arms around him, and Jason shot toward the ground. She probably screamed, but the sound was ripped from her mouth. Her vision blurred. And then, thump! They slammed into another warm body—Leo, still wriggling and cursing.

"Stop fighting!" Jason said. "It's me!"

"My dragon!" Leo yelled. "You gotta save Festus!"

"Where's Piper?!" Kyra asked,

Leo pointed a little ways below them and they spotted Piper, her hair whipping around her face. Her body was leveled as if she was skydiving. Jason dipped down and Kyra grabbed the girl's hand and Piper wrapped her arms around her,

"Festus!" Leo yelled, 

Jason was already struggling to keep the four of them aloft, and Kyra knew there was no way he could help a fifty-ton metal dragon. But before she could try to reason with Leo, she heard an explosion below them. A fireball rolled into the sky from behind a warehouse complex, and Leo sobbed, "Festus!"

Jason's face reddened with strain as he tried to maintain an air cushion beneath them, but intermittent slow-downs were the best he could manage. Rather than free-falling, it felt like they were bouncing down a giant staircase, a hundred feet at a time, which wasn't doing Kyra's stomach any favors.

As they wobbled and zigzagged, Kyra could make out details of the factory complex below—warehouses, smokestacks, barbed-wire fences, and parking lots lined with snow-covered vehicles. 

They were still high enough so that hitting the ground would flatten them into roadkill—or skykill—when Jason groaned, "I can't—"

And they dropped like stones.

They hit the roof of the largest warehouse and crashed through into darkness. Kyra missed the catwalk and landed on the ground level. She gasped in pain as she rolled over, propping herself up onto her elbows.

Loud footsteps came towards her and Kyra came face to face with something hideous. It was large and had a hideous black grin, a smashed nose, and a single bloodshot eye in the middle of his forehead.

"Cyclops," Kyra whispered,

She began crawling backward, away from the creature, "Jason!" Kyra screamed before her back hit something. She turned and there was more Cyclops,

The larger cyclops sniffed the air and grinned, "Demi-god." He stated before grabbing onto her. Before she could scream, he placed his hand over her mouth,

"Kyra? Where are you? Are you alright?" Jason called out from above,

"Yeah, I'm fine!" One of the Cyclops replied, copying her voice exactly. Kyra's eyes widened, they could easily trick them into coming downstairs and capturing them all, "I'm gonna look around a bit. Stay where you are!"

"All right, be careful!" Jason replied after a moment,

The female Cyclops turned to the other male that didn't have his arms around Kyra, "Build a fire. Tonight, we feast."