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about all two of them.
Two exs... Who are they??
“You’re dead, Sorrengail, and I’m going to be the one to kill you.”
Forshadowing??
not that a dragon would ever admit to making a mistake.
I wouldn’t be standing here if I’d quit every time something seemed impossible to overcome.
Dain steps forward and cups my face,
Hate him for this
“This place can warp almost everything about a person, Vi. It cuts away the bullshit and the niceties, revealing whoever you are at your core. They want it that way.
“Fascinating. You look all frail and breakable, but you’re really a violent little thing, aren’t you?”
not all strength is physical,
“Going for blood today, are we, Violence?” he whispers. Metal hits the mat again and he kicks it past my head and out of my reach. He’s not taking my daggers to use against me; he’s disarming me just to prove he can. My blood boils. “My name is Violet,” I seethe. “I think my version fits you better.” He releases my wrist and stands, offering me a hand. “We’re not done yet.”
“Oh, Violence, you’re good, but I’ve known better poison masters. The trick is to not make it quite so obvious.”
Brennan
Tynan’s eyes widen, like he’s actually surprised. “Really?” “Really.” I shake my head and study the course. “Shit. I’m…sorry. Barlowe said—” “And that’s your first mistake,” Ridoc interjects. “Listening to that sadistic ass is going to get you killed. And you’re lucky Aetos isn’t here.”
Tynan, Tynan, Tynan. If you would've just listened to Ridoc...
You want to know why you’re still alive? Because you’re the scale I currently judge myself against every night. Every day I let you live, I get to convince myself that there’s still a part of me that’s a decent person. So if you want to quit, then please, spare me the temptation and fucking quit. But if you want to do something, then do it.”
“The right way isn’t the only way. Figure it out.”
But most importantly, if I go, if I hide…I’ll never know if I’m good enough to make it here. And while I might not survive if I stay, I’m not sure I can live with myself if I leave.
“I think I’m just as loyal to my sister whether I’ve had a letter from her or not,” I counter. “There are bonds that can’t be broken.”
“I’m just…not as strong as other riders.” “I know exactly who and what you are, Violet Sorrengail.”
“You are the smartest of your year. The most cunning.” I gulp at the compliment, brushing it off. I was trained as a scribe, not a rider. “You defended the smallest with ferocity. And strength of courage is more important than physical strength. Since you apparently need to know before we land.”
“Look who rode in on the baddest motherfucker around!”
“They’re a mated pair, Tairn and Sgaeyl. The strongest bonded pair in centuries.”
“What, dragons don’t think we need the gods on our side?” Shit, it’s cold up here. My gloved hands tighten on the pommel. “Dragons pay no heed to your puny gods.”
“It’s hard to love a second home as much as the first.” I swallow. “It’s easy when the second home is the right one.”
“This place cuts away the bullshit and the niceties, revealing whoever you are at your core.” I repeat his words from this summer. “Isn’t that what you said to me? Is this who you really are at your core? Someone so enamored with rules that he doesn’t know when to bend or break them for someone he cares about? Someone so focused on the least I’m capable of doing, he can’t believe I can do so much more?”
“The reason we’ll never be anything more than friends isn’t because of your rules. It’s because you have no faith in me. Even now, when I’ve survived against all odds and bonded not just one dragon but two, you still think I won’t make it. So forgive me, but you’re about to be some of the bullshit that this place cuts away from me.”
“Do not dare to try and read me, human, or you’ll regret it.”
Xaden reading Tairn's intentions
“Promise me you won’t tell anyone about the time-stopping,” Xaden asks as we head back into the tunnel, but it feels an awful lot like a command. “It’s not just for your safety. Rare abilities, when kept secret, are the most valuable form of currency we possess.”
says the guy with a secret ability
Even the most effective poisons come in pretty packages, and Xaden’s exactly that—as beautiful as he is lethal.
“And it’s all right that you ask. Someone should know. Someone should remember.”
Relatable
“Wondering if you can trust me?” He flashes another easy grin. “Yes.” The answer is simple. He laughs, the sound echoing off the tunnel walls and glass windows of the clinic. “Good answer. All I can say is that your survival is essential to Riorson’s, and I owe him everything. Everything.”
I fumble my quill and it falls to the ground, but before I can lean over, the shadows beneath the arm of my desk lift the instrument like an offering. I pluck it out of the shadows and look back at Xaden. He’s locked in conversation with Garrick, not paying me a speck of attention. Except, apparently, he is.
“You know I can’t kill you. Fuck, Sorrengail, the entire quadrant knows I can’t kill you.” He leans into my space, eclipsing the rest of the room. “That doesn’t mean you can’t hurt me.”
Good gods, we’ve been putting on a fucking show. What is it about Xaden that makes me tune out the rest of the world?
And Liam? He can stop pretending that he can’t channel just so he isn’t forced to leave me for an hour a day.
“You are astonishing.” He shakes his head. “I couldn’t do that for weeks.” “Guess I have a superior teacher.” The emotion swelling through me is more than joy. It’s euphoria that has me grinning like a fool. I’m finally not only good at something, but astonishing.
“We’ll both regret it.” He shakes his head, but there’s more than hunger in his eyes as he stares at my lips. “Naturally,” I whisper. But knowing I’ll regret it doesn’t stop me from wanting it—wanting him. Regretting is a problem for future Violet. “Fuck it.”
against his and losing that mental foothold he calls grounding. A flash of light burns behind my closed eyes, followed by the boom of thunder. Thunder-snow isn’t uncommon around here, but damn does it summarize how this feels, wild and out of control.
“I finished this for you,” Liam says, handing me a figurine as we climb the wide spiral staircase to the third floor. It’s Tairn. He’s even mastered his snarl. “This is…incredible. Thank you.”
Liam <3<3<3
Are we friends, or am I just your assignment?”
“We’re friends. Tell me.”
Liam’s gaze finds mine. “Stay alive.” “Working on it, and not just for my sake.” I give him a smile. “Thanks for being a great shadow.”
But I stay on my feet until his hands clasp my face. Agony fills every cell in my body as violent, vibrating energy rips through me with an intensity that makes it feel like he’s cleaving ligament from bone, muscle from tendon. I scream as I’m shaken by an internal force I don’t understand, as though he’s forcing his own power into my body, shocking me with a thousand stings of vibrating energy.
Is he channelling power from Violet?
His sadistic grin and a red rim around his eyes are all I can see
Jack is for sure a venin at this point.
Hands reach for us both, and I hear Ridoc and Emetterio cry out, jerking their hands away after contact. Whatever Jack is doing is transferring from me to them by touch.
Venin powers transfer by touch.
No, he’s not only wearing fighting leathers and boots, he’s strapped to the nines with what looks to be a dozen different daggers in a dozen different sheaths. Is it absolutely toxic that I’m attracted to this look on him? Probably. But one look, and my temperature rises.
I study the blade in his hand. It’s beautiful, with a solid black hilt engraved with Tyrrish knots, old, mythical runes of intricate swirls and ties. The blade itself is clearly honed to lethal perfection. “It’s spectacular.” “It’s yours.” My head snaps up, but there’s no lie in his onyx eyes. “I had it made for you.” His lips curve slightly. “What?” My mouth opens, and my chest tightens. He took the time to have it made? Shit. That gives me feelings I really don’t want to have. Soft, confusing feelings.
“You won’t like what happens if you push me.” “Or maybe I will.” I turn just enough that my lips brush the shell of his ear. He jerks up, and the heat in his gaze makes me all too aware of everywhere our bodies connect. “Disarm me before I test that theory in front of everyone in this gym.” “Interesting. I didn’t take you for an exhibitionist.” “Keep pushing, and I guess you’ll find out.” His gaze drops to my mouth. “I thought you said kissing me was a mistake.” I don’t care if the entire quadrant is watching if that means he’ll kiss me again. “It was.” He smirks. “I’m just teaching you that
...more
I sheathe the new dagger, then collect the others and do the same. They really are lovely, all marked with different runes. It’s a shame there are so many parts of Tyrrish culture that were lost centuries ago during the unification, including most runes. I don’t even know what they all mean.
little shocks blossom along my skin as I give form to the energy,
He opens the door to the dormitory for me, and I walk inside. The motion is so easy that I know it’s not only practiced but second nature, which is at complete odds with, well…everything I’ve come to know about him.
There are three folded missives in the middle, and I pick up the first, revealing a sharp dagger with an alloy-infused hilt and what looks to be a Tyrrish rune in the handle that she must be using as a letter opener or something.
Mommy has an alloy dagger
Liam’s wide eyes meet mine. “You’re kind of terrifying.” “Thank you.” I grin, and we get out of there, running as fast as we can.
