----
Alka launched into the air. The wind exploded downward.
The frogs were flung backward like sacks of dirty laundry caught in a wind tunnel. Leaves, spears, and war flags scattered into the trees as the great bird took flight.
The tunnel shrank beneath them. The crater, the broken bodies, the last echoes of Blor'Ghul's legacy, all vanished into mist.
They had survived. And now, the skies belonged to them. Kai collapsed backward with a deep, exhausted sigh.
He landed on Alka's back, sprawled across a section of warm feathers. "I am never fighting a boss again," he mumbled.
Naaro scooted closer and lifted his head. "My lap," she declared. "He needs comfort. He fought the hardest."
Sha pushed her. "Excuse you? I carried four frog bodies and two frog grenades. He goes on my thighs."
Azhara yanked his arm. "His soul likes my aura more. He told me in a dream. He belongs right here, next to my heartbeat, to my chest."
