*Axureon*

Consciousness returned to me like the slow rise of the sun over the distant hills. My eyes fluttered open, blurred images gradually sharpening as the world came back into focus. Sitting at my bedside with an aura of serene vigilance was Saphira.

My instinctive reaction was to cower away from her, but it wasn’t long before I could see that her body was no longer a prisoner of Shylah’s making.

She ran a hand up and down my forearm in comfort after my ...