"Why do the men always have the honor to fight in war when women have the power to bring the army down to there knees"
A ruthless man is nothing but a man
A ruthless woman is everything a man wishes he could be.
What happens if the rebellion didn't...
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There were other cadets on the Parapet, some ahead, some behind, but I kept my eyes focused forward. I wasn't in competition with anyone else. I wasn't trying to prove anything to anyone. I was here because I had no choice, but also because I needed to prove something to myself. I needed to know that I could survive this. I had to.
I heard footsteps behind me, but I didn't look. I could tell from the sound of their movements that they weren't as experienced as I was, that they were struggling more with balance, with the wind. They wouldn't last. I would, though. I would make it across. I had no other option.
There was a distant roar—maybe from the dragons, maybe from the thunder—but I ignored it. I focused on the task at hand. My legs were starting to burn, my arms trembling from the tension in my muscles. But still, I didn't look down. I kept moving forward.
Suddenly, there was a shift in the air. A gust of wind, cold and sharp, and the stone beneath my feet seemed to shift. It wasn't much, but it was enough to make me stumble, my foot slipping slightly. My breath caught in my throat, and I flung my arms out instinctively to steady myself. My boots skidded across the slick surface, but I caught myself just in time.
My heart pounded in my chest, but I didn't let the panic rise. I couldn't afford to. I clenched my jaw and pushed forward, steadying myself. One step at a time. The wind howled in my ears, deafening in its fury, but I couldn't let it break me. I had to stay focused.
The Parapet wasn't meant for the faint of heart, but the height wasn't the problem. The problem was the temptation to quit. The feeling of your legs burning, your body aching with the strain, and that nagging voice in your head telling you to turn back. To stop.
But I didn't stop. I didn't dare stop.
My feet were steady now, my focus razor-sharp. The stone beneath me was slick, but I adjusted, finding my rhythm with every step. The gusts of wind seemed to grow fiercer, biting at my exposed skin, but I barely felt them anymore. I was moving on instinct now. And when I was halfway across, I knew that I was going to make it.
I didn't look up—didn't dare risk losing my focus. But there was something about the way the rain stung my face that told me I was close. There was no mistaking it. I could feel the air change around me—the heaviness, the charged atmosphere of the air as the storm surged.
The Parapet was almost behind me now.
And then I heard a crack.
Not in the stone beneath me, but in the air itself. I stopped mid-step, hearing the unmistakable sound of wings. The dragon's wings.
I looked up.
There, high above me, was a massive, blue dragon, soaring across the sky, its wings beating against the wind. The creature's eyes locked onto mine from afar, and for a split second, it felt as though the entire world had fallen away. As if the dragon was watching me, waiting for me, judging me.
