Page 97 of Oath of Rebellion

He saw green swirls of light mix with blue. A jolt of energy shot through him like lightning, then he slumped into darkness.

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Knox drifted through the clouds and blinked rapidly. His eyesight was better than it'd ever been. He could see for miles. Hells, he could even see the deer in the field below him as it frolicked with its mother.

He took a deep breath of the crisp, clean mountain air.

He looked down, his eyes widening as his breathing turned shallow. He glanced to the side. He had wings, great, giant wings. They shone iridescent green and brown in the sunlight.

A slow pump of his glorious wings, and the wind sliced around him, almost causing him to fall. He turned this way and that, slowly writhing through the air and learning how to maneuver this huge body.

A glance down, and he saw his hands and feet were now four sharp scaly claws. He snorted, and green gas shot out of his nostrils, sinking through the air and dissipating in the clouds.

He circled the mountains, dipping low and learning how to shoot high in the air. The freedom and joy that came from flying was unlike anything he'd ever felt before.

No, that wasn't true.

He'd felt this same intense feeling when he was with Eirwyn.

He sucked in a quick breath, his heart racing with a stab of worry. Where was Eirwyn?

At the thought, his head turned to the south to the foot of the mountains. It was like she was a beacon of light. He knew exactly where she was as if he were staring at the wayfinder and zooming in on her location.

He flew over the forest, his mind racing as he saw her signal from the dwarves' lodge. His body twisted and pain shot through his side. He was being ripped in two. His claws spasmed, and he screamed as he fell.

Water went up his nose, making him jerk. A hand shoved his head into a horse trough. His tail went up, but something grabbed it.

The hand on the back of his head lifted, and he came up for air, gasping. He blinked and looked around. Several dwarves held tightly to his tail, sitting on it to keep it from stabbing someone.

Ashur backed away, his hands raised and water dripping down his forearms. He frowned but there was relief in his eyes.

"Easy, mate. We figured it was worth a shot," he said.

Knox sat back on his haunches, and the dwarves scrambled off of him. He looked around. He wasn't in the metal cave anymore. Now he was in the stables area of the workshop.

"Eirwyn–" His voice was hoarse as he stood, shaking his head.

Ashur and Krys exchanged a look, and it made Knox' heart race. He ran through the still open door and down the narrow hallway. He found Eirwyn back in the coffin, the glass covering her and the blue mist surrounding her inside.

He laid his hands on the glass. "Eirwyn," he whispered.

Krys' voice sounded far away even though he stood at Knox' elbow. "We've done all we could. Your kiss changed her vitals, though."

"For the worse?" Knox croaked, afraid that his poisonous breath would kill her faster. It felt like a knife was stabbing him in the stomach over and over.

Krys shook his head. "Not necessarily. Her body is trying to fight the Beyond now."

"She–she's alive?" Knox asked, the pressure on his chest tightening.

Krys nodded. "For now, yes."

"How long can she stay in here and fight the Beyond? Has anyone ever come out of it safely?" he asked, afraid to hear the answer.

He'd heard the warnings all his life from Olive. The Beyond was dangerous, more so than even the deadliest parts of the forest.

Krys paused, then rubbed his large stomach and sighed. "The stasis chamber was made for dwarves. With the different biology and cell structure–"

"How long?" Knox demanded. The tone was sharp, the one he used with the Robins when they were training in how to survive in the forest.