to Beowulf. “Are you ready?”
He smirks. “I was born ready.”
Pulling on Elan’s scales, I slowly climb onto her back. At times like this, I miss the saddle I made for her. I have ridden her bareback, but I wonder how Beowulf will do. Once I'm up, I reach over the side and assist Beowulf, yanking him up by the collar of his tunic. He slips and slides while attempting to grab Elan’s scales, which brings a smile to my face.
After a final pull, he manages to hook one leg over her back and lever himself up into a sitting position, then he shimmies forward to wrap his arms around my waist.
Several angels of death surround us. I’m not sure how they will pull this plan off, but we don’t have any other choice, as Ander said. Their faces are focused, their expressions set in determination as though ready to tackle their next mission.
When my eyes connect with the leader’s, Ander whispers, “Are you ready?”
Keeping my mouth shut, I nod.
He moves closer to make sure I can hear him. “Get your dragon to fly out in her invisible form, and a couple of us will hover over you. Hopefully, this will block the lava monster from seeing you and Beowulf.”
“Let’s do this,” I say.
Changing into her invisible form, Elan pushes into the air and slowly flies toward the river entrance. Her pace is slow enough to give the angels time to keep up and hover above us with their black wings, which I can’t help but be mesmerized by. From birth, I’ve always had a fascination with wings. They're so beautiful, and I feel a slight pang of jealousy churn within me—just like when I watch the winged Valkyries. The black wings of these angels of death are as beautiful as the Valkyries’ white ones. Even though I now have Elan, who acts as my wings, my life would have been much easier if I was born with my own.
We exit the cave under the cover of the angels’ wings and quickly cross the river, away from the glowing red lava. The dark wings wouldn’t be incognito with a glowing background. We're better off flying over the dark land, where their wings have a better chance of blending in.
After reaching the far side, we follow the edges of the river. Many more angels of death surround us, their wings beating in an alternating synchronization, providing us with more shelter. I manage to catch a small glimpse of the cave, and the tension in my shoulders releases slightly when I see the monster still sitting on top, seemingly oblivious to our escape. Full of gratitude, I gaze at my rescuers’ faces and long, flowing black hair. Viewing them as my rescuers doesn’t detract from how handsome each one is, dressed in all black, with powerful black wings.
I marvel at our escape, realizing that Freya was quite smart to send these dark heroes to come and get us. I hadn't realized how their black wings and uniforms and hair would benefit us in this land. Freya must’ve known of the nature of this place. I hope to the gods that she hasn't been here or let her knowledge of the realm become known to Surt. That would just encourage him.
Under the dark warriors’ protection, we manage to travel quite a distance in a short period. I don't know where we're going, but I assume they do. They only recently arrived and weren’t blindfolded or kidnapped when they did.
The angels seem to be heading in a specific direction, with Ander leading the way. We accelerate to a speed that indicates they must know where they are going. They seem to have a homing mechanism leading them back to the entrance. I gaze over my shoulder and catch another glimpse of the cave in the distance. We have traveled quite far, and the monster hasn’t pursued us. With each beat of Elan’s wings, my hope rises. Perhaps we will get out of here without being missed.
The lava river swerves to the right, and we dive toward the ground as Elan follows Ander and a few other angels of death. As we maintain a height several feet from the ground, I wonder why, for we don’t seem to have a reason for the descent. I’m about to ask, thinking of a diplomatic way to question the leader, when Elan swerves to the right and lowers farther. Suddenly, a loud spine-tingling roar reverberates across the desolate and