I was hoping you were going to fight me on that whole concept, Zoran said, but it looks like logic pervades longing.
Stop listening to my thoughts.
"It's not my fault you're sending all your thoughts right to me. You need to work on blocking what you're thinking from me."
I trudged behind him, imaging an impenetrable wall in my head safeguarding my thoughts from escaping.
You're the most frustrating, vexing, irritating shifter I've ever met.
"Did you hear that?" I inquired.
"What?"
"Nothing," I said, satisfied my mental walls had worked.
Looking at me over his shoulder, Zoran's smoldering eyes pinned me as he said, You're the most intriguing, strong-willed, impressive summoner I've met.
Opening his mouth, he held up a hand and continued, "You basically said that right to me. The next time you don't want me to know how you feel, try not to speak directly to me. I'm not a mind reader, but it's quite simple to know what you're thinking when you don't try to hide it."
I clamped my mouth shut, willing my mind to blank as I grabbed my throwing star and ignored the Dracnae swimming around in my stomach. We picked up our pace with Serene walking beside us, and made it to the center of the town where a giant barn sat in the square. The red paint was chipping, and the roof was caving in, but I could appreciate the beauty for what it once was when Mavis was a thriving farm town. This barn was where its townsfolk gathered for special occasions before the demons had taken it over and forced everyone to flee.
Zoran entered the cavernous structure and climbed the ladder to the raised loft. I sheathed my weapons and patted Serene, recalling her back to her realm as I rubbed her scale. I was careful to avoid stepping on my dress as I made my way up the ladder behind Zoran. He had to hunch his neck a bit, but my shorter stature fit just fine as I joined him. The wooden boards were rotting and there were missing planks in various spots. Stray pieces of hay littered the ground and a wooden railing lined the entire loft that wrapped around the whole barn.
Zoran sat on a bale of hay and leaned back against the wall, closing his eyes as he heaved a sigh. I took a seat on the ground and crossed my legs, leaning back on my wrists as I studied him and knitted by brows. I slumped, lowering onto my forearms as exhaustion consumed me. Now that I had two essences flowing through me, I should have been feeling energized and rejuvenated, especially since my sole essence had been dormant for so long.
All these challenges and tests were taking a toll on me. Not to mention the constant stress I felt about Penn and even Bastion, as well as the constant sorrow I had for all my friends who did not make it to graduation.
My hair had become loose in the braids, so I tucked the few stray strands behind my ear as I looked around, wondering, "What are we doing here?"
"I think we've both verified we're fit to be each other's Champion. We're trustworthy, compatible, and committed to protecting each other in the face of death. We can just wait out the rest of the Test of Talons and keep our egg from getting even a scratch on it," he explained without opening his eyes.
"I still think you're wrong about the eggs. We're going to seem like useless Champions when we show up with one egg while the rest of our Force went out and gathered more."
Zoran opened an eye. "This doesn't sound very trusting to me."
I laid on my back with a groan. "Forget it," I grumbled, folding my hands on my stomach.
Zoran and I sat in silence, and I got lost in my thoughts about the mass Phoenixian extinction. The once unstoppable species of Guardians that had protected all of Traeveria from the forces of evil were just gone – obliterated by a single bomb sent to Azmar by the demons.
It was no wonder we were losing the war against Ravos; we weren't nearly as strong nor powerful as the Phoenixians. Bastion was part of the most despicable species in existence. Penn was trapped in Ravos with the vile beings. Misty had been turned into a crazed demon by one of them. Zoran's sister, Elora, had been murdered when she'd been close to finding an antidote. They'd stolen Armaeda to weaken our essences and strengthen theirs.
My mother had been killed by the demons terrorizing Traeveria and our empire.
The Ravos demons would pay. I was in the Ice Force now and after training, I'd be sent to the Voltant Isles to aid in winning the war against them.
"You're making my heart race."
I lifted my head from the straw and stated, "I'm not even doing anything."
"Our essences are bonded together. I feel everything you're feeling. Calm down, I don't like feeling so amped up."
I unwound my hands and placed my head back on the ground with a deep breath. "All I feel from you is an overwhelming sense of fatigue."
"It's exhausting being this fiercely strong and good-looking all the time."
I rolled my eyes and derided, "Pfft, I'm sure that ego of yours is tiring to constantly deal with."
A loud horn blared and we picked our heads up, listening for what it could mean.
Emperor Nepheus' voice boomed in the echo of the alarm, instructing, "Elemental Forces! Return to Latovia where we will gather at Insignia Academy to assess egg count."
I stood, dusting off my gown as I grouched, "See, he said egg count, not egg state. We're going to look like such fools when we show up with this one measly egg. Then, we'll be found unsuitable for each other and banished outside the walls as snacks for the demons to feast on."
"I wouldn't have taken such a risky gamble if I wasn't certain."
"Let's sure hope that's the case."
Zoran and I made our way back down the ladder and out the barn. I summoned Serene and the three of us took off toward the town above Clear Water.
The colorful vests of the Elemental Forces crowded around the arching entrance of the obsidian academy building where my father stood above a flight of stairs in front of the double doors. Serene landed at the back of the group and I swung off her neck, jumping into the snow next to Zoran. Irubbed her scale, hoping her essence had disappeared before my father couldwitness the Insignia designating my power on her head. We separated into our respective Forces and I looked around, noticing fewer Champions than we started with.
Calandra nudged me, whispering, "How many eggs did you both collect?"
"Uh, we were only able to get one," I admitted, shooting a glare at Zoran. "How about you and Denali?"
Denali opened his cloak, displaying a pocket bulging with eggs. His short, dark hair ruffled in the slight breeze and his slant, deep set eyes crinkled as he smiled, dimples surfacing on his cheeks. "We got seven, including the one given to us at the start," he boasted. "We took two from each Force since we were able to go to Eaton, Quincey, and Solas."
"That's a lot! Our strategy was a more...defensive stance," I explained.
Calandra shrugged, brown skin rosy from the chill. "I'm sure that'll be fine."
I wasn't convinced.
Addressing his new Champions, Emperor Nepheus said, "This has been the Test of Talons. Those of you standing here have proved that you are able to trust your bonded Draconian, work collaboratively together, and will die for each other if need be. Your bond is for life and your essences are now intertwined. Death is the only variable that can sever your pairing. Therefore, when one Champion dies, the other will, too. You bond once and follow each other for eternity."
You can't get sick of me just yet, princess. Or ever, actually.
Too late.
Zoran snickered and coughed into his fist to hide the laugh as he drew unwanted attention from nearby Champions.
"As such, the Champions who could not achieve trust, compatibility, and sacrifice have already been stripped of their powers and exiled from the Nyrial Empire and the Wrexial Mountains," the emperor continued in ruthless apathy, "The rest will be found worthy or unworthy now. Bring out your eggs for inspection."
It seemed so barbaric and wasteful to just get rid of Champions when we were in dire need of them in the Voltant Isles to combat the war. Between our final challenge at the academy and the Test of Talons, we were losing many strong and valuable Champions. By stripping "unworthy" Champions of their powers and banishing them outside our gates, the emperor was leaving them up to the fate of the demons. Then, those Champions would succumb to the Curse and just add numbers to the maddened creatures attacking us from the Ravos Kingdom.
It was just all so...counterproductive.
My nerves spiked and I fumbled with the button on my cloak as my hands shook. Once I managed to undo it, I pulled out our small egg and frowned at its green and yellow surface.
"Commanders, take note of the total number of cracks among all the eggs each pair of Champions acquired during this test. I do not care about the number of eggs you were able to steal. I told you to protect your egg. If you weren't able to do that, then you cannot follow simple instructions. I will not have you in my Force."
That wasn't completely true. Emperor Nepheus had told us that the Force acquiring the most eggs during the Test of Talons would win. I gnawed on the inside of my lip until I tasted blood, reminding me of the stinging wounds leaking more of my blood on my shoulders from the Ravos shifter. Edge.
Denali's face paled and Calandra's eyes widened as she panicked. Commander Morgana went around, counting the fractures on the surface of every egg each set of Champions obtained and made her way over to us.
"Show me your dragon eggs," she demanded.
Zoran's lips thinned and he shifted on his feet as his mother disregarded him. Holding out our single egg, I said, "This is it."
She raised a dark brow, storms brewing in her eyes as she nodded once. She took it from me and inspected the egg before handing it back to me.
"Zero cracks," she said, moving on to Calandra and Denali.
Next to us, Denali pulled out one egg at a time for Morgana to discover the cracks. My stomach churned as Denali removed all seven of their eggs.
Morgana clicked her tongue. "Twenty-three cracks."
Denali gulped and pocketed the flawed eggs as Calandra chewed her lip and rubbed her arms. I stood on my toes, scanning the area for the fair-haired twins and caught sight of the Wind Force's Commander Galen as he approached them.
I held my breath as the siblings showed Galen our black speckled egg that had the one crack I'd caused on it. The Commander's long, gray beard swished over his chest as he shook his head, then turned to another duo of Champions.
The entire process took a painstaking amount of time. Anxiety crawled up my throat as I waited for the fate of all the Champions.
"Alright," Emperor Nepheus said, "Those of you who received ten or more cracks, come join me at the base of the stairs."
Calandra and Denali hesitated, and Morgana gave them a warning glare, spurning them into action. I watched as five pairs of Champions crowded together with them on the steps below the emperor.
"You are all unworthy of fighting on my Elemental Force. You will be a detriment to us as a whole species, and you do not deserve to remain in the empire and use up our limited resources. All the rest of you are dismissed. Training for the Force begins in two days."
We need to leave now, Zoran said, tugging on my arm as my feet remained rooted in place.
But Calandra and Denali...I trailed off.
It is best we do not see what happens.
I already knew what would happen. I'd watched as Bastion had been exiled and a syringe had withdrawn his essence to rid him of his power. I couldn't watch it happen again.
Dejected, I hung my head and put the egg back inside my cloak as I walked away from Latovia with the surviving Elemental Forces. By the time the sun rose, Calandra and Denali would be victims to the Cursed demons rampaging Traeveria even though they'd pledged their lives to defend their empire against the Ravos demons.
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