As we spotted them coming in, an alarm starting to blare across the entire city.

Lumena and Fogor came to a stop next to Cinira, her eyes locked on the incoming invasion.

"We must get you inside to safety," Fogor said.

"I must lead from the front," Cinira said. She stepped back, into the open space in the middle of the roof. She didn't even bother to change out of her dress before she burst into her dragon form, the familiar star pattern on her hide.

Maybe that was why she wore those gossamer dresses. They disintegrated pretty darn easy.

Fogor and Lumena weren't too far behind in their changes, though they did strip first.

Cinira launched herself into the air with her guards not far behind, her wings beating hard, making me crouch down and squint against the wind they created.

"Mia!" Ashur called out.

As I turned to him, he tossed a bow towards me. I snatched it out of the air.

"Arrows line the edges of the roof," he said, and pointed them out.

I followed his gesture, and there they were. At regular intervals, quivers full of arrows waited, ready to be fired. The sight of them focused me.

I wasn't as practiced in my dragon form as everyone here, who had lived half their lives in their alternate shape, but I knew how to use a bow and arrow. As I felt the smoothness of the piece under my hands, I missed my own equipment. I'd have to replace it soon, but I could work with this.

As I leaned over and grabbed some arrows, Ashur stripped next to me.

"Stay towards the edge of the roof so you're less of a clear target," he said. "I'm going to be right above you, okay?" he said.

"Okay."

He stepped in close and gave me a hard kiss.

There and gone.

Then he was stepping back and bursting into his other form as well, the gleaming gold of his dragon's hide standing out clearly against the purples of Cinira's skein. I had a moment where I worried about the target he represented. Then he was gone. Crouching down, he launched himself into the air, fast enough that the burst of air almost blew me farther down the roof.

I was on the roof alone. Time to do this.

Looking up, I let out my breath and watched the pattern above me for a moment. It took me a bit to adjust to the swarming wings.

Cinira and her guards were a strong triangle smashing directly into the oncoming onslaught of phoenixes. They blew fire out of their mouths in a concerted effort, catching one of the birds before the others maneuvered abruptly away from the flame.

I'd never seen phoenixes fight before. They were slightly smaller but could also maneuver better for the size difference, their wings built differently. And while they didn't breathe fire, the feathers along their silhouettes, especially near their tails and the tails themselves, were aflame with a blue fire that was hot enough I could see it burning the dragons they bumped into, which they seem to be doing on purpose.

Even as I watched, new lavender dragons were launching themselves into the air from the square below and the rooftops nearby, Cinira's defenses rallying impressively fast.

The phoenixes met resistance, but I saw them still making a beeline directly for the tower I was standing on.

It was no coincidence that they were aiming directly for me.

"Come and get it," I muttered to myself, anger surging.

Zeroing in on the nearest phoenix, its eyes locked on me as it shot towards my location, I reached the stillness I needed inside me. The quiet place that I went to when I had to shoot quickly and accurately. Where I didn't let anything distract me from my goal.

I released the arrow, the construction of it letting me know it was built to penetrate armor. I was guessing it could also pierce phoenix feathers well enough.

The arrow shot through the air in a clean line, heading directly for my target.

And spearing it directly between its eyes.

Direct hit.

The phoenix dropped immediately, its wings crumpling.

I had a moment where I worried about any bystanders below, but then I didn't have time to worry anymore.

They were coming at me fast and hard even as lavender dragons beat them back.

I got another one. And then another one. But then three came at me at once.

Aiming for the one closest, I shot the arrow as the other two drew even closer. I knew I wouldn't be able to get them both.

Nocking another arrow, I aimed for the one to the left. I would take out as many as I could.

Even as I thought it, I caught the glint of gold to my side.

Ashur. He zeroed in on the phoenix I wasn't aiming at.

As I launched my arrow, he spit out a stream of blazing fire directly at the phoenix.

My arrow hit just as the other one burned.

Both dragons and phoenixes were resistant to fire for obvious reasons, but it still did damage when not coming from their own bodies. And judging by the fire pattern on the phoenixes, the entirety of their bodies wasn't meant to be on fire. And they didn't have time to change back to their human forms to heal, something I'd learned the hard way a change could do. Not only could they not spare the time in the middle of the battle, they were also flying in the air.

I didn't know if they could change to human and back before hitting the ground, let alone if they could even focus to make the changes in that scenario.

Not that that was my concern. My goal here was protecting Cinira's territory from this attack.

Ashur and I fell into a rhythm. I shot at a phoenix, and then Ashur either blew a stream of hot fire at them or knocked them to the side and into a building, his greater mass taking them down. Working in tandem, we were able to distract them enough that they weren't able to maneuver away from the fire. Or from Ashur's body blows. Until there weren't very many phoenixes directly around me at all. I lowered my bow for a second, taking a breath.

Cinira zoomed passed me in a flash of scales that caught my eye. Her guards separated from her, going in opposite directions but staying tight. I wondered what they were doing.

But then they surrounded a particular phoenix. Rather than taking it down with fire or knocking into it physically, they literally clamped down on it with their bodies and flew down to a rooftop where others were already waiting with chains. A net was thrown over the phoenix as Cinira and her guards launched back off the rooftop again. And found another phoenix to prey upon.

Prisoners. They were taking prisoners. And that was much more dangerous than simply killing. They were a well-oiled machine, obviously having practiced the maneuver many times.

The lavender dragons in the air were starting to vastly outnumber the phoenixes still air bound. And I wasn't the only one who noticed. I watched a few of the ones farther out turn tail to fly away. They let them go. Maybe so they could take the news of their failure back to Emberich.

When I looked around, I saw more than a few of the beautiful old buildings on fire. Phoenix bodies, along with those of some lavender dragons, were sprawled out on rooftops and on the narrow streets below, deep furrows carved into the buildings from their falling bodies. They were concentrated around Cinira's tower.

Around me.