Rose and the others left hours before dawn. The party was made entirely of valkyries. Unlike the cities, they could manage without the elves and humans. And this was their fight. Their home.

Five hundred of the Aerial Legion would go-all of them ridden by valkyries. A secondary person would come with them-an non-rider, but a valkyrie warrior nonetheless. The riders were half retired, half new and the non-riders contained both mentors and their trainees. A fair representation of young and old, each fighting for their home.               

Rose rode with Gemma, the General of the Aerial Legion and a formerly retired valkyrie herself. Together they led the one thousand valkyries

forward. They journeyed swiftly through the air, the constant beating of wings a familiar friend by now. Whilst they might have had a somewhat rough beginning, Gemma had carried Rose to the assassinations in Zerena and she now considered the one-eyed warrior a friend. Even if that one eye might be fixed on Rose's position.                                                               

It took half a day of travel for the Bird of Prey Mountains to come into sight. By then, it was too late.

————————————————

Lysandra

She paced in her study, helpless. Surely there was something she could do. A missive she could send, telling them to pull back in a way that wouldn't alert Medea. Even pulling a dozen valkyries-Rose included-might make the difference. But there was no way that Myra and Nala wouldn't demand answers as to why. And if Lysandra answered, then they might pull the whole fleet and get her killed. She knew there were several people in the rebellion already itching to betray her to Medea and remove her as a threat entirely. Only the promise of eventual assassination kept them in check.

So she couldn't warn them. But there had to be a way. She could sabotage the soldiers or message the witch or...no. There was nothing. Any sabotage would have Lysandra the prime suspect. And there was no way the witch would risk her neck for this.

I can't just do nothing, she thought angrily to herself. I can't just watch and wait for them to fall into that trap.

If Rose died, the valkyries lost their second-best fighter. Not to mention the hundreds that would die with her.

Then she remembered something. Nala's words: We had to bide our time in the shadows. Watch blow after blow fall on the others. Waiting for the moment the snake was exposed. Because that's how all the others fell. They came in too early. They walked into her trap.

Lysandra took a deep, steadying breath. She would wait. She would bide her time in the shadows. One day, she would strike. For now, she watched the snake rear.

————————————————

Kestra

She dreamt. She dreamt of fire and shadow roaring from the depths of the mountain. Blood sprayed from the iridescent scales. Cries of pain ripped through the air, gryphon's wails and wyvern's dying roars leaving the silence in bloody, mutilated shreds. Fire leapt up in all directions, but shadow devoured it, until she saw Rose fall from a gorgeous brown-black gryphon-Gemma's?-and be swallowed by darkness.

Suddenly Kestra felt herself falling, and bolted upright. This world was real. The dream was not. Not yet, anyway.

She tore from the makeshift campground, looking for Nala amongst a sea of nameless faces. When she found her, she shook the chancellor from sleep. Nala mumbled groggily until she saw Kestra's face. Her tired expression was wiped away in an instant.                                             

"A dream?" Nala asked frantically. Kestra could only nod.                

"There's going to be an ambush. In Hawk Mountains. Rose is going to be captured." Nala shook her head, eyes turning mournful.                      "

"There's no time," she said sadly. "We'll never get there in time. It's too late to save them."                           
"No," Kestra said desperately. "Get-get the Aerial Legion. We'll fly as fast as we can." Nala only shook her head again. "No. She can't die. Rose can't die. What will we do without her?" Suddenly Kestra was remembering how the valkyrie had saved her when she ran desperately from Azul, how Rose fought with her for almost six years, never giving up on a chance at freedom. She'd been a friend. A true friend.
                  
Now all Kestra could do was watch the clock, waiting for the news to come in that Rose—and the others with her—had died.