Dawn of Cobalt Shadows (Burning Empire Book 2) by Emma Hamm (best e ink reader for manga .txt) 📕

She didn’t remember her mother very much. They were alike, everyone told her. The dragon mother was in the set of Sigrid’s shoulders. The way she squeezed her jaw when she was angry and the fire that burned deep in her eyes when someone said something wrong.

Even Hallmar had remarked upon it more times than she thought necessary.

“You are your mother’s daughter,” he used to say with a chuckle. “Dangerous and cruel at times, but always for the greater good.”

There was no greater good if she was dead, so Sigrid needed to keep moving. She had to help her people. If that meant finding out who she was so she could lead them better, then so be it.

“Find something,” she told herself again. “Lift your foot, damn it.”

Her foot lifted, then set down in the snow. Every step was an internal battle, and she waged war within her mind for every inch she moved forward. But she moved.

Shading her eyes, Sigrid searched the area for something, anything that would keep her alive. She could figure out how to start a fire. There was enough brush, even if it was hidden by the snow. It would light with dragon breath as long as she could wake up the beast inside her.

“There,” she whispered and pointed out a dark smudge in the distance to herself. “That’ll do.”

The snow tried to keep her where she was. The white powder whispered that she could still lie down. There was still enough time for her to rest, just for a few moments.

She refused.

Sigrid fought her way to the small cave in the side of the mountain and forced herself through the lip. A bear might live within it, and she wouldn’t be much of an opponent for anything at the time. Her greatest hope was that nothing would be so foolish as to live up here.

The snow had blown into the mouth of the cave. She crunched through the icy remains deeper into the mountain where the snow hadn’t touched yet. It wasn’t much of a cave really, shallow with only one turn.

She blew out a breath and reminded herself that beggars couldn’t be choosers. This cave was a message from the gods, so there had to be something more to it. If it got her through the night, then it was enough.

With a groan, she dropped the pack from her shoulders and rubbed her aching muscles.

“Fire first,” she told herself. “Then you can rest. But first, you have to get warm.”

That was the most important thing right now, and the only thought she could have in her mind. It didn’t matter that she was exhausted and wanted nothing more than to sleep. She had to stay awake for a few more minutes so she could get a fire started.

The cave was so dark; she couldn’t see anything at all. Sigrid took a few steps deeper into it, then stumbled on a pile of something on the ground.

“Don’t be bones,” she muttered. Not that she was afraid of seeing human remains. She’d seen them many times in her life. She didn’t want them to be there because it meant there was something living in the cave. She’d have to deal with whatever it was when it returned to its home to see her taking residence.

Dropping to her hands and knees, she felt around on the ground to touch whatever it was. Bones were usually smooth unless they were chewed upon. Even then, they had a texture she’d never forget. Her fingers bumped a small thing that rattled when she shifted it.

“Damn it.” Her stomach turned into a pit of acid and worries. She didn’t have the energy for this.

She grabbed the object and turned it in her hands. Was it… wood? Lifting it to her nose, she breathed in the scent of earth and dirt. Definitely wood.

“Why is there wood in here?” she muttered.

Sigrid blindly felt around in the darkness. There was a lot more of it, more than enough for a fire to keep her through the night, in fact. They were small, but she should be able to keep the heat centralized… Why was it set up as if someone had intended to build a fire?

Brows furrowed in concern, she reached deep inside herself and woke the dragon. Though cold and tired, it still lifted its head.

“Just a breath,” she whispered. “Like the old times when we wanted to impress people who were visiting Hallmar. It’s a trick of the mind, not a full shift. We’ll get ourselves warm yet.”

Opening her mouth, Sigrid felt the thrum of power deep in her chest. It wasn’t like magic, although there were people in Wildewyn who would disagree with her. It was more like something else living inside her that poked its head out for just a brief moment.

Fire boiled in her lungs then expelled in one single breath. The fire jumped from her lips to the pile of wood which immediately burst into flames.

Gods, but the heat felt so good.

Sigrid stretched her hands forward, letting the fire nearly touch her fingertips. It wasn’t enough, but it would have to be. Could it possibly ever be enough for a dragon who felt as though the world was coming down around her ears? She added a few more sticks just in case, but reserved the rest for later.

Rubbing her fingers together, she wracked her brain for the next step. Beastkin had trained for situations like this. She knew how to keep herself and others alive. It had been a long time since she’d had lessons with Hallmar and his soldiers, but she remembered their words. She had to.

“Survey the surroundings,” she repeated as if Hallmar were standing next to her. “There must be something in the cave that is of use. If there are rocks to build in front of the mouth to stop the wind, then that is fine. However, there was a bundle of sticks already prepared. That means someone else