“So, witches, amulets, dragons,” Bruni said. “What’s next, flying pigs?”

  Emberion, who had returned with his prey and was currently chewing on the leg of the thing, looked up at him. “I was not aware that flying pigs existed.”

  “They don’t,” Theo said. “He’s just grumbling.”

  “About things that do not exist?” Emberion asked.

  “About things that seem extraordinary and that we’re going to face.”

  “Ah,” said Emberion. “No, no flying pigs, dwarf. Just massive stone giants.”

  “I hate stone giants,” Bruni muttered.

  “What a surprise,” Theo said. “Is there anything you don’t hate?”

  Bruni glared at him. “Your cookies.”

  At that, Theo actually laughed. When not directed at him, Bruni’s grumpiness could be quite funny. “I’ll bake you more when I have the chance.”

  “Then I would very much like some too,” Emberion said.

  Theo chuckled. “I shall have to make a very big batch.”

  Emberion smiled. “I would like that very much.”

  “Can we get back to the point?” Freya asked. “Stone giants and wicked witches, ringing a bell?”

  Theo sighed. He longed to bake again, to wake up in a comfortable bed to a fairly uncomplicated life, and sneaking off to the kitchen every chance he got—not traveling this way and that to seek out danger.

  “The Grimpeak Wilds are not far,” Emberion said. “A few hours of flight and we shall be there.”

  “Flight?” Bruni said, going five shades paler at the mention.

  “Of course. It is much faster than going on horses,” Emberion said, sounding like he didn’t understand. “On horseback, it would be at least a few days, certainly.”

  “I don’t mind,” Bruni said. “I like the ground.”

  “We shouldn’t waste time if we can get things done faster, especially if you’re sick,” Theo said.

  Bruni growled, anger flaring in his brown eyes. “How many times do I have to say that I’m fine? I’m not sick.”

  “You are, dwarf,” Emberion said. “Darkness weaves its way around you.”

  Bruni glared, but that was not at all effective on the massive dragon.

  “What about the horses?” Theo asked.

  “Ebony can probably find his way home,” Freya said, though she sounded uncertain.

  Theo thought of Brioche, wishing the horse would just suddenly show up just so that he knew she was okay. But he feared he would never see her again—the forest and the mountains were no place for a sweet horse like her. Too many monsters lurked in the shadows.

  “The horses should go nowhere near the Grimpeak Wilds and the stone giants, anyway,” Emberion said. “The smell will attract the giants, and on their backs, you will be easy prey. Nor should they come with us to the wicked witch.”

  Freya sighed, sadness in her eyes. She ran her hand down Ebony’s neck. “Can you find your way back home, boy?”

  It was weird that this was the toughest part of the journey so far, Theo thought.

  “I’m not going to let Boulder go,” Bruni said, crossing his arms over his chest and looking like a hairy, obstinate child.

  Freya turned to him, her hand still on Ebony’s withers. “And what are you going to do when you begin to feel worse?” she asked softly. “When you can’t ride anymore, and can’t lift your ax to protect yourself? If we’re not around, what are you going to do?”

  Bruni’s glare was hot like lava. “I was fine before you, and I’ll be fine when you’re gone.”

  Freya shook her head. Her voice was surprisingly soft when she said, “No, you won’t be. Please, just come with us.”

  “What do you care? You don’t know me,” Bruni said.

  “No, but I’ve had enough good people dying around me,” she said, getting snappier again, her fingers coming up to touch her pendant before she brought her hand back to her hip.

  Bruni stared at her. “And I’m ‘good people’?”

  Freya shook her head. “I don’t think you’re bad, at least.” She shrugged. “We need to get going. You’re an adult, I think. Decide.”

  “Fine,” Bruni muttered. “I’ll come with you.”

  Theo managed to hold back a ‘There, that wasn’t so hard, was it?’ because he suspected it might start the whole discussion over again, just because Bruni always wanted to be contrary.

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  Ten minutes later, Bruni and Freya had both taken the saddles off their horses and said their goodbyes. A touch of envy passed through Theo, because he hadn’t been given the chance to say goodbye to Brioche.

  He hoped she was okay.

  Theo, with Nibblet in his pocket, climbed onto Emberion’s back, a thrill traveling down his back because he was back on a dragon and about to fly again. Freya climbed on next, taking Theo’s offered hand and seating herself behind him.

  Bruni eyed the dragon with great reluctance. As he did his best to climb up on Emberion—a show, if anything, of just what bad climbers dwarves were with their short, stubby limbs—he muttered about “undignified modes of travel”. Emberion gave him a none-too-gentle shove the last bit.

  Theo bit his lip to keep from smiling.

  When Emberion launched into the sky, Freya yelped and threw her arms around Theo. Emberion beat his powerful wings in a steady rhythm, making them climb higher and higher and leaving the safety of the forest for the unknown. Theo caught a last look of the horses, who calmly ate the grass, before he lost sight of them as the shrubbery got in the way. Around them, the world stretched out vast and wide—a tapestry of greens and browns, rivers winding like silver threads through the landscape.

  With the wind whipping through his hair, Theo felt a mixture of fear and exhilaration. He was flying on a dragon, on a quest to save his kingdom. Though it was nothing he had ever dreamed of, it was the stuff of legends—and he was part of it. Not that he was particularly convinced he would succeed, but at least he had Freya, Emberion and Nibblet with him—and even Bruni, who might be warming up to him just a little.

  “This is crazy,” Freya said in his ear. “We’re riding on a dragon!” The shiver of fear in her voice was one Theo had never heard from her before.

  He smiled. “No, it’s even better—we’re flying on a dragon.”

  “In what world is that better?” Freya asked.

  Theo twisted a little to glance over his shoulder at her. She was paler than he had ever seen before, her blue eyes wide. Her arms were still wrapped around Theo, holding onto him like a lifeline. It was certainly unusual, seeing how Freya was as far from the touchy-feely type as you could get.

  “Freya,” Theo said. “Are you afraid of heights?”

  “No,” Freya said, though her voice wavered. “That would be ridiculous. I am, however, afraid of falling to my death. Now sit still so I can hold on.”

  Theo chuckled. “Perhaps we can ask Emberion if he would consider getting a saddle.”

  “Don’t you dare,” Freya said.

  Theo wondered where his own fear had gone. The previous two flights had been terrifying—but he had, oddly, already come to like flying. Sure, it was an awfully long way down, but Emberion’s back was wide and unless he did something stupid, he wouldn’t fall off.

  He glanced further back at Bruni, and he found he could barely even make the dwarf out behind Freya—he only saw the arms sticking out, holding onto Freya. Well, if the dwarf was used to living in massive caves deep in the mountains, then he supposed flying was the exact opposite.

  “You okay, Bruni?” Theo called.

  He received no answer.

  Not much to do about it, he supposed. Freya and Bruni were both stuck up here until Emberion decided to land—and after that, they would be forced back up unless they wanted to make the rest of the journey on foot.

  Theo leaned forward to speak to Emberion, eliciting an annoyed yelp from Freya, and a grunt from somewhere behind her. “So, the stone giants next?”

  “Indeed, Theodore. You can see the Grimpeak Wilds in the distance.”

  ***

  Emberion must have a lot better eyesight than Theo, because it took a good two hours before he could make out the peaks of Grimpeak Wilds, even though the dragon claimed he could see it from the start. Grimpeak Wilds was, from this vantage point, a majestic tapestry of lush forests and rugged, small mountains piercing the skyline. The dense canopy of ancient trees unfurled like a vast, emerald ocean, broken only by the occasional clearing and the silver glittering of winding streams reflecting the sunlight.

  The occasional cry of a distant bird or the rustle of leaves stirred by the wind reached his ears, blending with the whoosh of Emberion’s wings.

  “This is Grimpeak Wilds, the home of the stone giants,” Emberion’s voice rumbled beneath him. “We may have to have to land to draw the stone giants out, but I warn you, do not go anywhere on your own. This territory is known for its many dangers.”

  “Unlike the friendly wolves and dragons we’ve met so far?” Theo quipped.

  Emberion chuckled. “Have I not been friendly?”

  “You have,” Theo said with a smile. “Your friend—Caelum, was it? He wasn’t as pleasant.”

  “He is younger,” Emberion said. “Thinks he needs to assert dominance.”

  “Because dragons aren’t dominant enough to start with?”

  Emberion merely chuckled.

  Theo went back to marvel at the thought of giants dwelling among the trees and peaks below. How gigantic were the giants?

  Emberion began his descent, headed for a large hill of gentle green. Freya held on tighter to Theo, burying her head in his back. A few hours of flying had yet to make her used to being way up in the air. As they approached the ground, the wind from Emberion’s wings stirred up leaves and small branches, causing a miniature whirlwind of forest debris. Landing with a graceful thud that sent vibrations through the soft soil, Emberion folded his wings against his body and allowed his passengers to dismount.

  “The stone giants will not like strangers in their lands. They will come to us,” Emberion said as he surveyed the surroundings. “Especially if we move around on the ground.”

  Freya finally released her grip on Theo and slid off Emberion’s back, straightening up with a sigh of relief. She looked about ready to kiss the ground. “I’ll never get used to that.”

  Bruni, who looked pale as a sheet as he dismounted, took a few shaking steps, his hand brushing over the tall grass.

  “You okay?” Theo asked Bruni.

  The dwarf looked up at him. “Fine. Stop being a worrywart.”

  “You just didn’t seem to like flying,” Theo said, shrugging.

  “Now, why would I not like that? Falling to your death with enough time to really think about what’s happening, that’s what I’ve always dreamed of,” Bruni said, though the paleness of his cheeks and the faint tremble to his voice made his words less gruff.

  Theo couldn’t help but feel for the dwarf, despite his sharp words.

  “Avoid touching the foliage here,” Emberion said, nodding to Bruni’s hand on the grass.

  “You think I don’t know what I can and cannot touch, dragon?” Bruni snapped.

  “How am I to know what you do and do not know, dwarf?” Emberion asked.

  Theo had to admit that Bruni knew his plants. His hand—unblistered and pain-free—was proof of that.

  Theo had no idea if there was dangerous grass, and if there was, what told it apart from regular, non-poisonous grass, so he carefully kept his hands to himself as they started through the dense undergrowth. The forest floor was spongy beneath his feet, dense with moss and fallen leaves. Emberion took the lead, pushing aside heavy branches and making a path for the others. After a few minutes, he stopped briefly to pick something up, and then continued on. Freya mumbled something about “damned forests just going on forever” and Bruni looked surly, as always.

  Theo trailed slightly behind, trying to keep his hands from touching and his feet from slipping on the uneven ground—and that meant he didn’t notice the low-hanging spiderweb glistening with morning dew until it was too late. He walked right into it, flailing as the sticky strands clung to his face.

  Panicking, he stumbled back, tripping over a hidden root and crashing into a thicket that concealed a steep drop.

  “Theo, what are you—”

  Nibblet squeaked and jumped out of Theo’s pocket as he lost his balance.