They flew past the second star. Milori was tugged along as if in a daze while Sled looked terrified and Gliss was silent.
"I can take them from here," Bernard told the other guards. "Thomas, just have everyone wait here for me. It's just straight on until morning."
"Are you certain?" Thomas frowned.
"Yes." He took the chains and continued the journey in silence for a few minutes. "It must be painful," Bernard said quietly. "To have your wings shrivel. Queen Clarion asked that I provide you each with a sedative until the worst of the pain fades. For some reason you felt it wise to lie to her that only a queen feels wing pain," he frowned at Milori. "But you don't need to worry about her any longer." He leaned in to whisper in his ear. "I put honey on her wings in her bedroom last night. Her back is just as soft too."
Milori vibrated with anger but was practically immobile with the chains and gag when he tried to struggle.
"Don't like it that she chose a guard over a lord like you?" he laughed.
They arrived at the edge of morning, and, in a heartbeat, Bernard unchained Gliss and shoved her over the edge.
Gliss let out a scream and tried to grab anyone as she fell backwards into the bright light.
Sled and Milori lunged against their chains to try to get to her, but she was already gone. Milori's neck veins bulged with a muffled scream. Then his eyes flew to Bernard, dangerously angry.
Bernard smiled and unchained Sled to shove him into the bright light too. Sled let out a terrifying scream as he disappeared.
Milori tried to fling himself after Sled to catch him, but Bernard laughed and held him back.
Milori stared into the edge of the light in shock, panting heavily against his gag.
Bernard grabbed Milori and wrapped a chain around Milori's chest, binding his wings down. Milori was at Bernard's mercy to not drop him through the skies. Or over the edge of morning. Bernard helfed Milori up and looked into his eyes. "I'll comfort her when I tell her you threw yourself in from guilt before I could unchain you." Then he threw Milori in.
Milori fell backwards through the blinding light and was then hurling through the blue sky toward the ocean below. Trying to free himself from the chains was futile. Even if he could get his arms free, his wings would shrivel at any moment and the impact of the water would crush him. So he closed his eyes and thought of Clarion as he plummeted perilessly to his death.
"Sled!"
His eyes shot open when he heard Clarion. She was diving down after him.
He looked absolutely shocked to see her. And he was falling fast with his weight and the added weight of the chains. She flapped hard to get to him as they ripped past the clouds. The water was advancing and she'd never make it, much less stop their velocity in time. So she yelled for Sled once more, wherever he was, and closed her wings.
The speed at which they shot through the sky made the wind roar in her ears. She angled herself to ride Milori's break in the air to gain speed. She reached out and caught the chain around his chest.
He shook his head frantically, knowing they'd either both die hitting the water or her wings would rip trying to stop them. She wrapped her arms around him and slowly opened her wings at an angle to prevent a force that would rip them off. When she turned them so she was under him, he gave a muffled cry, trying to convince her to let go. She closed her wings and shoved hard against him, putting inches between them. Inches was all she needed. She shot pixie dust at him, and he jerked as his velocity was instantly cut in half. He still crashed into her. The air knocked out of her, but her arms went around him and she opened her wings at an angle. Their direction changed so they were falling at a 45-degree angle to the water. The whitecaps of the water were visible now.
She met his terrified eyes. Even without speaking, she knew he wanted her to let go. But she would rather go with him than let him fall. "I'm sorry," she whispered and set her hands against his chest. She shot pixie dust directly into him, and then whipped to the side so he fell past her. He was suddenly jerked impossibly hard against the chain as Clarion grabbed it behind his back and they slammed to a hover just inches above the water.
Looking over his shoulder at her, she was clearly straining trying to hold up his weight. "Sled!" she yelled. "Somebody!"
Gliss came shooting down and touched the chain around his wings. It froze and shattered, instantly freeing him. He was suddenly falling and opened his wings just as Clarion and Sled caught his arms to stop him from hitting the water.
"Hi," Sled grinned calmly with an arm around him.
Gliss shattered the rest of the chains.
Milori beat his wings to take his own weight and immediately spun around to cradle Clarion in his arms. His breathing was harsh and choppy. And she realized he was trying to not weep.
She wrapped her arms around him. "It's alright," she whispered.
"Never scare me like that again, Clarion. You could have died."
She felt something damp on her chest and pulled back to see his chest leaking sugar where she had forced pixie dust into his body through his skin. "I'm sorry. We have to get you all back to winter-"
He refused to let her go. "No, tell me what in the name of Neverland is going on First."
Clarion smiled. "Well, Milori, I am being courted by a guard who just tried to murder The Lord of Winter."