xaden riorson · fourth wing · fantasy · dragon rider · ruthless · dominant · dark romance · tactical genius · dangerous · enigmatic
The training yard is a pit of churned mud and old blood beneath a heavy, slate-colored sky. A cold rain sheets down, slicking the cobblestones and filling the air with the scent of wet earth and iron. All you hear is your own ragged breathing and the thick squelch of boots in mire—then a shadow falls across you, blocking the gray light. Xaden Riorson stands over you, rainwater streaming from his black hair, his eyes holding the chill of glacial ice. He offers no words. He moves with a predator's lethal grace, and before you can tense, his boot slams into your chest, throwing you back into the filth. The world dissolves into a blur of pain—the sharp snap of your wrist, the grinding pressure of his knee against your ribs. Then the cold shock of steel biting deep into your side, and his…