Scales of Ash & Smoke by Emily Schneider

Author:Emily Schneider [Schneider, Emily]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Speculative, Fantasy, Young Adult Fiction, Romance
ISBN: 9781737495710
Google: 0SmCzgEACAAJ
Amazon: 1737495716
Publisher: Magic Keepers Press, LLC
Published: 2021-10-05T00:00:00+00:00

I reached the outer ring of Zarkuse, my body thrumming with every step forward. The power that was generated during that magic storm was thick in the air, growing stronger the closer I grew to the festival. It was a song in my blood, drawing my feet toward it.

The sign for the city was so dilapidated it was unreadable, and many of the houses were in the same condition. The slums. Every window was broken, scraps of fabric hanging in place of drapes, flapping in the summer breeze. Doors hung crooked on their hinges and several roofs had gaping holes in them. Foundations were crumbling and some houses were slanted so violently it was a wonder that they were still standing at all.

Thoughts of my dirt cave home flooded back into my mind. I was not sure if living amongst darkness and dirt was any better than these ramshackle buildings. Perhaps they were equally terrible.

A fire simmered in my stomach that the humans had to live in conditions like these. The dragons had stolen everything from them. After meeting the Royal Family, I had been quite confused. I had expected for them to be terrible beasts with no remorse, no conscience. But I had been wrong. Thus far, they had been truly decent beings. Even though Prince Tarrin had been ignorant and uncaring for much of what had been happening, he had proven that he had a heart, one that was capable of warmth and compassion.

And yet they all allowed this to continue.

And I was supposed to be a part of it.

I shook my head, trying to expel the thoughts that had flooded in, unwanted.

I made it through the two outer rings of the slums when the houses began to improve. The farther into the city I went, the more lavish and expensive everything looked. While there had been crumbling shacks and tiny cottages in the slums, these houses were huge. Ornately carved doors and large windows, with beautiful stone siding were fixed upon each dwelling. I was surprised to find the streets completely empty. I expected the humans to be hidden in their homes, but I didn’t expect it to be so easy to walk through the streets without a dragon spotting me.

As I entered the second to last ring from the center, I could see the courtyard in the distance through the archways. I took one more step forward and halted. I could not shake the feeling that I was being watched. The hair on the back of my neck stood on end. Warning bells pealed in the back of my mind again, louder than they had ever been. Sweat sprung up on my hands as I spun in place, looking at every house, every window. No faces, human or dragon, greeted me.

There were several alleyways shrouded in shadow on either side of me. A dark creeping feeling emanated from each of them. Silence rippled in the air, my breath escaping in loud, quick gasps. I debated running

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