Lawson raised a hand. “So, are we like . . . soul insurance? Because I’ll need a better premium.”

  Cara elbowed him. “You’re not even the responsible one in our pair. If anyone’s the insurance, it’s me.”

  Kimba grinned. “You could say that. The bond lets you share power, even if you don’t share the same element. It lets you heal each other, keep each other whole. But it’s not automatic. You have to choose each other. Every day.”

  Ra looked at his soul bonded, and the devotion Kimba saw in his eyes made her a little jealous. She’d once had that. Shelly leaned into his side as he spoke. “So we’re here because we’re all a little broken. And a little saved.”

  “Exactly,” Kimba said gently. “And together, you’re stronger than you could ever be alone. That’s why the soul elementals were the original gatekeepers. We kept the balance. When the soul element disappeared, the gates weakened. The world went . . . well, it went to shit, as Rory would say.”

  “Do not blame me for your propensity for profanity, or judge me for my use of it,” her dragon bonded said as she shook her head. “Really, you have enough crap going on in your life. By the way, where have you been keeping all your clothes all this time? Do you have several crowns, like for special occasions? Ohh, did you and Osiris have matching robes?”

  Lark laughed. “I want to see the crowns. Do you think she has one for the dragon form and one for human?”

  Kimba ignored Rory’s words, mostly. She knew her friend was hurt over the secret, or really more over the fact that Kimba hadn’t told her about it first. She had to remind herself that Rory was only nineteen. She was a youngling compared to Kimba. “The point is, the fifth element, the one that brings all of you together, needs to be restored. If we fail, evil wins.”

  Liam whistled. “No pressure, then. Just don’t screw it up, or demons invade again.”

  Brontes rumbled, “Demons are the least of your worries if you don’t pay attention.”

  Solyn added, “Not to mention, if you fry my tail, I’m eating your shoes.”

  “Noted,” Gabby pointed at the dragon. “Definitely bigger worries at this current moment.”

  Kimba pressed on. “Your first lesson: use your bond. I know you’ve already experienced using your power together. But this is more. It should be second nature. You should be able to sense your mate anywhere, feel their fear, their hope, their strength. When a threat comes, you don’t just react—you respond together.”

  She let her gaze sweep over the group, making sure to include the new couples. “And now, since you’re all so alert, we’re going to practice. The dragons and I will be . . . let’s call it ‘sneakily aggressive.’ You’ll need to defend, attack, and remember not to blast your own team.”

  Gabby grinned, fire dancing in her palm. “Bring it, Kimba.”

  “Don’t provoke her,” Rory suggested. “Bitch be crazy.”

  “She’s not wrong,” Aston added. “Kimba takes a scary amount of joy in scaring the crap out of people.”

  Osiris’s voice drifted in again, “You should let me scare them a little. Maybe I’ll pop out of the woods and–”

  “Try it, and I’ll let Zephyra sit on you,” Kimba shot back, barely hiding her own smirk.

  With a gesture, Kimba signaled the dragons. In an instant, Zephyra, Brontes, and Solyn vanished into the trees. Kimba faced her new trainees, her expression fierce. “Stay with your mate. Use your bond. And remember—this is only a game until it isn’t.”

  Tara rolled her eyes. “Great pep talk.”

  Rory grabbed Aston’s hand, eyes bright with adrenaline. Shelly pressed closer to Ra, both of them already glowing faintly with the flicker of their combined power. Gabby flexed her fingers, and Liam cracked his knuckles, both ready for anything. Tara and Elias stood back to back, the earth shuttering beneath their feet. The other couples fanned out, having obviously worked together and being seasoned warriors by the way they took a ready stance and watched each other's backs.

  Kimba gave a sharp whistle. The woods erupted with the sound of dragons on the prowl. “Let the games begin.”

  The first dragon attack came from above—because, of course, it did.

  “Whoa, dude, that is more than the three dragons that you mentioned, Kimba,” Gabby hollered as Zephyra swooped low over the tree line, blue scales glinting as she unleashed a gust of wind that sent everyone sprawling. Gabby shrieked as her hair flew straight up, and Liam instinctively threw his arms over her, only for both of them to end up facedown in a snowdrift.

  On the far side, Riggs and Lark were already reacting, their air magic combining to create a swirling shield that deflected the worst of the gust.

  “That’s how we do it,” Lark called, her grin wild.

  Rush and Brianna, both air as well, linked hands and sent a counter-gust that sent Zephyra spinning.

  “We’ll take the sky, you take the ground!” Rush called to Crey and Tinley, who stood ready.

  Crey and Tinley, fire blazing between their palms, squared off against Brontes. The green dragon reared and shot a jet of emerald fire.

  Tinley snickered. “Let’s show them how it’s done, Crey.”

  Together, their flames spiraled into a shield, holding off the dragon fire and earning a grudging nod from Brontes.

  Lawson and Cara, fire elementalists, stood back to back.

  “Our turn,” Lawson said.

  Cara rolled her eyes but grinned. Together, they summoned a dome of fire that Solyn’s tail smashed against, fire and gold scales clashing in a spray of sparks.

  “Ten points for dramatic entrance, minus two for personal grooming,” Aston called, brushing snow from his glasses, watching the action, and analyzing as usual.

  “Personal grooming?” Elias asked, ducking a stray blast of wind.

  Aston pointed. “That dragon is literally licking its wings like a cat would lick a paw.”

  “At least they are clean,” Tara offered. “Would you rather be attacked by a dirty dragon?”

  “Not really important at the moment, people.” Rory was already back on her feet, grabbing Aston’s hand as she pulled power from his air element, her own magic sparking just beneath the surface. “Ready?” she whispered. Kimba watched the pair, eager to see Rory work.

  He nodded, and together they summoned a swirling updraft that caught Zephyra’s next gust and sent it spiraling harmlessly into the sky.

  Rory’s eyes sparkled. “That’s how you fly with style! You’re welcome, by the way.”

  Kimba chuckled and then her attention turned to the others.

  Shelly and Ra faced Brontes’s next attack—a tail swipe this time. Ra pulled Shelly close, and together, with seamless motions, summoned a wall of fire, blocking the blow. Shelly leaned into Ra, and Kimba could see their bond, strong, whole, a living current between them.

  Across the field, Brianna and Rush took to the air, their combined wind magic lifting them above the fray, dodging dragon fire and laughing.

  “Try to keep up!” Brianna hollered to the earth couples below.

  Lark and Riggs, not to be outdone, used their air magic to launch themselves, flipping over Zephyra’s head in a wild aerial maneuver.

  “Show-offs!” Gabby called.

  Gabby and Liam, water and fire, braced as Zephyra arced back around, this time aiming a cold blast of wind their way. Gabby’s palms flared with heat, and Liam called up a burst of water from the snow at their feet. Together, they turned the wind into a cloud of steam that rolled over the clearing, shrouding them in mist.

  “Did we just make a sauna?” Gabby asked, incredulous.

  Liam grinned. “We’re all about creature comforts.”

  Kimba watched, pleased—especially at how the new and old pairs were already starting to mesh, bantering and competing, but always, always working together. Her heart warmed as she saw the soul bonds flare: Lark and Riggs, Rush and Brianna, Crey and Tinley, Lawson and Cara—each pair unique, each one vital to the whole.

  Osiris’s mental presence brushed her mind, smug and teasing: “They’re better than I expected. Still, you’d get faster results with a little healthy fear.”

  She didn’t bother hiding her wry amusement. “How’s your cleaning going? Did you make the beds and line up the firewood into neat stacks?”

  He huffed, but she felt the pride in him. “Don’t think I won’t remember this. Payback is a bitch.”

  “So, not too different from you? Bitches get stitches,” she fired back, using another of Rory’s favorite sayings.

  Kimba focused on the field. “Remember, it’s not about brute force. It’s about connection. Feel your mate, anticipate them. Don’t wait for words—move together. Let your souls be one.”

  Across the clearing, Tara and Elias squared off against Solyn, who prowled closer, golden scales gleaming. Solyn’s tail whipped across the ground, sending a wave of earth and snow rippling toward them.

  “Push your power into the ground,” Elias told her, his voice steady. “Picture it joining with my own and then pull upwards.”

  Tara nodded, her face set with determination and focus. Together, they slammed their palms down, and the ground rippled beneath them, rising up into a wall of stone and dirt. Solyn’s tail smashed into the wall, shattering earth and snow but leaving the pair untouched.

  Tara smirked. “Not today, lizard.”

  “Okay, Love,” Elias chuckled. “Maybe don’t provoke that large, strong dragon?”

  “Fair point,” she agreed.

  Liam grinned. “As I said, we’re all about creature comforts.”

  Kimba circled the clearing, arms crossed, her dragon and human instincts both keenly aware of every move. She watched their bonds flare bright, watched the way they reached for each other—sometimes seamlessly, sometimes with a tangle of fumbling hands and nervous laughter, but always, always together.

  Zephyra swooped in again, this time aiming for Rory and Aston. Rory spun on instinct, her witch power weaving with Aston’s air—wind and magic twining in a shimmering cyclone that lifted Zephyra’s wings and spun her away, harmless. Rory whooped, hair wild, laughter ringing out.

  “Another one bites the dust,” she crowed.

  Zephyra snorted a cloud of frost in response.

  Embera, along with one of the other dragons, a smaller one called Streak, tried a sneak attack on Riggs and Lark, but Lark sensed it, her bond with Riggs so strong that she didn’t need to look. She used the power of air to fling a boulder up behind them just as Embera’s massive paw came crashing down, the rock absorbing the blow with a satisfying crunch. From behind, Riggs faced Streak, turning his arms in a circular motion, as tornadoes formed all around them. The smaller, but faster dragon, Streak, weaved and darted in between the tornadoes, but Lark added her own power to Riggs’s, and there were just too many to dodge. One of his wings took a hit from a tornado and sent him off into a spin.

  “Way to back me up,” Riggs told his soul bonded, pride in his voice.

  Kimba decided it was time for her to join the attack as she launched herself straight up into the air, shifting as she went. She soared up into the sky, making sure to stay in the sun's rays, her shimmering scales becoming camouflaged by the brightness.

  “What are you up to?” Rory asked her through their unique bond.

  “It wouldn’t be a sneak attack if I told you,” she pointed out.

  “Just try not to kill anyone,” Rory said dryly. “You tend to forget not everyone is as resilient as I am.”

  “And humble.” Kimba evened herself out in the sky and then looked down at the group. Her sharp eyesight allowed her to make out each couple, not to mention the dragons that circled over them. She reached out through the dragon lines of communication. “Let’s show off a bit,” she told them. “Every flying trick you know, do it. Use your speed, your best maneuvers. Give them something to look at so they’re not focused on me.”

  “On it,” Zephyra assured her.

  Kimba watched as the dragons began their complicated routes, sometimes barely missing each other by mere centimeters. It was quite a sight to see such huge beings moving with such grace, speed, and agility. She waited a good three minutes for the dragons to captivate the attention of the humans, and then she circled in a wide arc to the back of the group. Her descent was slow, her wings silent, as she kept them still, using the wind to soar. When she was within thirty feet, she opened her mouth, letting out a mighty roar along with massive flames.

  Rory was the first to turn with a shout. “Look out!”

  All of them turned, hands up, each of their elements responding to their commands. Liam created a dome of water that covered all of them, while Aston followed Rigg’s example and created a tornado that wrapped around him and Rory, strong enough that it would repel the flames. The other air elementals focused on offense, attempting to throw shots of power whips of wind at her, but she out-maneuvered them. Shelly and Ra simply covered themselves in flames, their forms protected by their elemental fire. Gabby stood next to her mate with her hand on his shoulder, no doubt pouring her power into him. Crey, Tinley, Lawson, and Cara, all more experienced in battle than the younger ones, also used their power in an offensive way, shooting up geysers of fire all around. Kimba and the other dragons were forced to scramble or risk getting burned.

  As soon as Kimba began to make her ascent, the other dragons joined her.

  “This time we dive and do a vertical stop, wings extended,” she told her warriors.

  They dove but at the last moment pulled back, their wings widening to bring them to that vertical position with massive amounts of wind pushing at the group. All of them began to slide backwards. Shelly tumbled back, legs over head, and Aston threw out his hand using his own air magic to right Ra’s mate to her feet. Gabby met Liam’s eyes as her mate used his water magic to wrap everyone’s feet in ice, helping them to remain still and upright. Meanwhile, Rory, the sneaky little witch, called to Kimba, using the powerful bond between them, and Kimba could not ignore the call for help. Kimba immediately whipped around and nose-dived towards her bonded human. She landed in front of Zephyra and fought her own nature to attack the one who would dare attack Rory.

  She hadn’t felt that way until Rory had needed her.

  Zephyra immediately stepped back and bowed her head, conceding to the soul-elemental queen and human-bonded dragon.

  Kimba was distracted when there were several snappy sounds and then ice burst into the air, turning into snowflakes. Kimba watched, unsurprised as Gabby stuck out her tongue to catch one, and Liam laughed while the rest of the group chuckled. The older soul bonded congratulated the younger couples on their efforts and skills.

  Kimba shifted to her human form and looked at each of them. “Well done,” she told them, her voice ringing with sincerity. “Let’s take a break. I’ll let the other dragons give you any pointers that perhaps they noticed that I missed. Meanwhile, I’ve got to deal with something.”

  Rory, never one to let things go, called after her, “Just so you know, you’re still not forgiven for the whole secret-queen thing! I expect a full apology, preferably with snacks and sparkly jewelry.”

  Lark snickered. “She’s not going to let you live that down, Kimba.”

  “I wouldn’t want her to,” Kimba replied, her eyes warm as she met Rory’s.

  “Would that something that Kimba needs to deal with happen to be an asshat in need of a dragon talon to the heart?” Gabby asked.

  “Damn, woman,” Liam groaned. “I can’t decide if your blood-thirsty appetite should worry me or turn me on.”

  “Nothing wrong with being blood thirsty,” Tinley said with a flippant shrug. “It’s better than being a doormat that lets someone walk on you.”

  “Yep, that,” Tara nodded as she pointed at Crey’s mate.

  Kimba smiled at the group, her eyes meeting Rory’s. “You did well,” she told her. “Although, you sort of cheated by calling on me.”

  Rory winked at her. “You never said we had to fight fair.”

  Kimba felt Osiris’s presence at the edge of her mind, pulling her attention away from the elementalist in front of her. She looked at Solyn, the oldest warrior of the group. “Let them rest, but then begin drills again. Remember who their foe is: have them focus on how they should fight demons.”

  Solyn rumbled as he spoke, “I’ll get them ready.”

  And as the dragons circled protectively around the students, Kimba turned from them, shifted and headed towards the caves where Osiris was brooding. She could feel it through the bond. She let herself drift through the air giving herself time to collect her emotions, needing to have her emotional armor in place before she faced off with the male who’d once held her heart.

  CHAPTER 5

  “You’re not mine anymore. You haven’t been for a very long time. But that isn’t what shreds my heart. What threatens to tear me apart is the fact that I’m still yours. The moment the memories returned, all of those emotions and feelings flooded me. They hit me like a hurricane, pounding on me relentlessly with a ferocity that I fear will shatter my soul and any connection we might still have.” ~ Kimba

  Kimba landed in front of the caves with a sweep of her tail, shifting in a shimmer of iridescent light as her claws touched stone. She barely paused to smooth a wrinkle from her tunic—she wasn’t here to look pretty for Osiris, and she doubted he’d notice anyway. Not with the way he brooded, pacing just inside the mouth of the cave, arms crossed, jaw clenched so hard she half-expected to hear a crack.

  He didn’t acknowledge her entrance. Typical. Kimba set her shoulders and strode in, her expression as unyielding as her heart felt bruised.

  “None of the children got eaten?” Osiris asked, his tone dry, and annoyed.

  “If you mean Shelly–”

  “Did I say Shelly?” he snapped.

  If she had hackles, they’d have been standing on end at his tone.

  It made her feel completely guilt-free at taunting him. “I’m assuming all of your chores are complete. Which means you are hiding or sulking,” she said, voice cool as a mountain stream. “Or is this just another bout of existential angst?”