# CHAPTER 12: The Walk of Fire and Judgment
Hello everyone, it's me again! How are you all doing? Today I will continue to walk with you and review CHAPTER 12 of *Fourth Wing* — and I promise you, this one will leave your heart pounding. We're stepping out onto the dragon path for the Presentation, where every cadet becomes prey and spectacle at once. This is the moment the dragons decide if you're worth their time... or worth burning to ash. Let's not waste a second. Take my hand, keep your eyes down, and walk with me through the valley of death.
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The valley floor opened before them like a god's waiting room. Averaging twenty-five feet tall, the dragons stood in silent, terrible formation, lined up several feet back from the dirt path — close enough to pass judgment, close enough to kill. Violet could feel the weight of their gaze pressing against her skin. Every instinct screamed at her to run, but there was nowhere to go.
"Let's go, Second Squad, you're up next," Garrick said, beckoning them with a wave that made the rebellion relic on his bare forearm gleam. Violet noticed Dain and the other squad leaders had stayed behind. She didn't know if Dain would be thrilled she'd made it up the Gauntlet or livid that she'd cheated, but in that moment, she didn't care. She had never felt more alive, more thrilled.
"Into formation," Garrick ordered, all mission and no warmth. Violet observed his neat line of patches, the flame insignia, the weapon-master tokens. He was a leader through and through, and it was strange to think he was so close to Xaden. Of course, unlike Xaden, Garrick wore his authority like armor.
They formed up, with Rhiannon and Violet near the back. A sound like rushing wind stopped as suddenly as it began. Someone else had been found wanting.
Garrick's hazel eyes skimmed over them. "Hopefully Aetos has done his job, so you know it's a straight walk down the meadow. Stay at least seven feet apart."
"In case one of us gets torched," Ridoc muttered.
"Correct, Ridoc. Cluster if you want, just know that if a dragon finds disfavor with one of you, it's likely to burn the whole lot to weed one out." Garrick paused, letting the warning sink in. "Also, remember you're not here to approach them. If you do, you won't be making it back to the dormitory tonight."
Luca raised her hand, immediately annoying everyone. "Can I ask a question?"
Garrick nodded, but the ticking of his jaw betrayed his irritation. Violet couldn't blame him. Luca was the kind of person who tore everyone down to feel taller.
"Third Squad, Tail Section of Fourth Wing already went through, and I talked to some cadets..." Luca started.
"That's not a question." Garrick lifted his brows.
"Right. It's just that they said there's a feathertail?" Her voice pitched upward with a whine.
"A f-feathertail?" Tynan sputtered from directly in front of Violet. "Who the hell would ever want to bond a feathertail?"
Violet rolled her eyes. Rhiannon shook her head.
"Professor Kaori never told us there would be a feathertail," Sawyer said. "I know because I memorized every single dragon he showed us. All hundred of them."
"Well, guess there's a hundred and one now," Garrick replied, looking like he'd rather be rid of all of them. He glanced over his shoulder at the valley entrance. "Relax. Feathertails don't bond. I can't even remember the last time one has been seen outside the Vale. It's probably just curious. You're up. Stay on the path. You walk up, you wait for the entire squad, you walk back down. It really doesn't get any easier than this from here on out, kids, so if you can't follow those simple instructions, then you deserve whatever happens in there."
With that, he turned and headed toward a path before the canyon wall where the dragons perched. The squad followed, breaking away from the crowd of first-years. The breeze bit at Violet's bare shoulders where her sleeves had been torn for bandages. Her hands had stopped bleeding, thank the gods, but she felt raw all over.
"They're all yours," Garrick said to the quadrant's senior wingleader — the woman Violet had often seen murmuring to Xaden during Battle Brief. Her signature shoulder spikes were gold today, wicked and gleaming like she wanted to add a little extra menace.
She dismissed him with a nod. "Single file."
The squad shuffled into a line. Rhiannon hovered at Violet's back. Tynan stood directly ahead — which meant Violet would suffer his commentary the entire way. *Awesome.*
"Talk," the senior wingleader said, folding her arms. "Nice day for a Presentation," Ridoc joked.
"Not to me." Her gaze narrowed. "Talk to your nearby squadmates while you're on the path, as it will help the dragons get a sense of who you are and how well you play with others. There's a correlation between bonded cadets and level of chatter."
Violet immediately wished she could switch places.
"Feel free to look at the dragons, especially if they're showing off their tails, but I would abstain from eye contact if you value your life. If you come across a scorch mark, just make sure nothing's currently on fire before continuing along." She paused. "See you after your stroll."
Then she stepped aside, revealing the dirt path that ran through the center of the valley. Up ahead, sitting so perfectly still they might have been gargoyles, were the hundred and one dragons who had chosen to bond this year.
The line began moving. They kept seven feet of space, boots crunching on dark gravel. Violet was hyperaware of every step. The trail was hard, and the lingering odor of sulfur burned her nose.
They passed a trio of red dragons first. Their talons were almost half her size.
"I can't even see their tails!" Tynan shouted. "How are we supposed to know what breed they are?"
Violet kept her eyes locked on their massive muscled shoulders. "We're not supposed to know what breed they are."
"Fuck that," he said over his shoulder. "I need to figure out which one I'm going to approach during Threshing."
"Pretty sure this little walk is so *they* can decide," Violet retorted.
"Hopefully one of them will decide you don't get to make it to Threshing," Rhiannon whispered, just loud enough for Violet to hear.
Violet laughed as they approached a pair of browns — both slightly smaller than her mother's Aimsir, but not by much.
"They're a little bigger than I thought they would be," Rhiannon admitted, her voice rising. "Not that I didn't see the ones at Parapet, but..."
Violet glanced over her shoulder to see Rhiannon's wide gaze flickering between the path and the dragons. She was nervous.
"So do you know if you're having a niece or nephew?" Violet asked, continuing forward past a handful of oranges.
"What?" Rhiannon said.
"I've heard some healers can make pretty good guesses once a woman is further along in her pregnancy."
"Oh. No," Rhiannon said. "No clue. I'm kind of hoping she'll have a girl. I guess I'll find out once we finish the year and can write our families."
"That's a bullshit rule," Violet said, lowering her gaze when she accidentally made eye contact with an orange. *Breathe normally. Swallow the fear.* Fear and weakness would get her killed, and she was already bleeding.
"You don't think it encourages loyalty to the wing?" Rhiannon asked.
"I think I'm just as loyal to my sister whether I've had a letter from her or not," Violet countered. "There are bonds that can't be broken."
"I'd be loyal to your sister, too," Tynan said, turning around and grinning as he walked backward. "She's one hell of a rider, and that *ass*. I saw her right before Parapet and damn, Violet. She's *hot*."
Violet made a spinning motion with her finger. "Turn around. Mira would eat you for breakfast, Tynan."
"I'm just wondering how one of you got all the good traits and the other looks like she got the leftovers." His gaze slid down her body.
Full-body shudder. Gross.
"You're an asshole." Violet flipped him off.
"Just saying, maybe I'll write a letter of my own once we get privileges." He turned and kept walking.
"A nephew would be good," Rhiannon said, as if the conversation had never been interrupted. "Boys aren't too bad."
"My brother was awesome, but he and Dain are my only experience growing up around little boys." They passed more dragons, and Violet's breathing started to settle. The smell of sulfur faded, or maybe she'd grown used to it. There were singe marks along the path — evidence of how close the dragons had come to torching previous candidates. They were close enough now that Violet could feel the weight of their presence, but she couldn't hear them breathing.
"I think Dain was probably a little more rule-abiding than most kids," she continued. "He likes order and pretty much detests anything that doesn't fit neatly into his plan. He's probably going to give me shit about how I got up the Gauntlet, just like Amber Mavis did."
They passed the halfway mark and kept going. The dragons stared, silent and ancient. Terrifying? Absolutely. But they wanted to be here as much as the cadets did, so Violet hoped they'd be judicious with their firepower.
"Why didn't you tell me about the rope plan? Or the dagger?" Rhiannon asked suddenly, hurt in her voice. "You can trust me, you know."
"I didn't think of it until yesterday," Violet answered, looking over her shoulder to see Rhiannon's face. "And if it didn't work, I didn't want you to be an accomplice. You have a real future here, and I refuse to bring you down with me if I didn't make it."
"I don't need you to protect me."
"I know. But it's just what friends do, Rhi." Violet shrugged as they walked past a trio of browns. For a few minutes, the only sound was the soft crunch of their boots on gravel.
"You keeping any other secrets up there?" Rhiannon eventually asked.
Guilt settled in Violet's stomach as she thought of Xaden and his meeting with the marked ones. "I think it's impossible to know everything there is to know about someone." She felt like shit, but at least she hadn't lied.
Rhiannon snorted. "If that wasn't skirting the question... How about this? Promise me that if you need help, you'll let me give it to you."
A smile spread across Violet's face despite the terrifying greens they were walking by. "How about this — I promise that if I need help you're capable of giving, I'll ask, but only" — she held up her forefinger — "if you promise the same."
"Deal." Rhiannon smiled wide.
"You guys done bonding back there?" Tynan sneered. "Because we're almost to the end of the line, if you haven't noticed." He paused in the middle of the path, his gaze swinging right. "And I still can't figure out which one I'm going to choose."
"With arrogance like that, I'm sure any dragon would feel lucky to share your mind for the rest of your life," Violet said, pitying whatever dragon — if any — would ever choose him.
The rest of the squad had gathered ahead, all facing toward the right. Violet passed the last brown dragon and inhaled sharply.
"What the hell?" Tynan stared.
"Keep walking," Violet ordered, but her gaze was transfixed.
Standing at the end of the line was a small golden dragon. Sunlight reflected off its scales and horns as it stood to its full height, flicking a feathered tail around its body. *The feathertail.*
Violet's jaw dropped. Sharp teeth. Quick, darting head movements. At its full height, it was only a few feet taller than her — a perfect miniature of the brown next to it.
She walked straight into Tynan's back and startled. They had reached the end of the path.
"Get off me, Sorrengail," Tynan hissed, shoving her. "Who the hell would bond that thing?"
Violet's chest tightened. "They can hear you," she reminded him.
"It's fucking *yellow*." Luca pointed right at the dragon, disgust curling her lip. "So not only is it obviously too small to carry a rider in battle, but it's not even powerful enough to be a real color."
"Maybe it's a mistake," Sawyer said quietly. "Maybe it's a baby orange."
"It's full grown," Rhiannon argued. "There's no way the other dragons allow a baby to bond. No human alive has ever *seen* a baby."
"It's a mistake all right." Tynan looked at the golden dragon and scoffed. "You should totally bond it, Sorrengail. You're both freakishly weak. It's a match made in heaven."
"It looks powerful enough to burn you to death," Violet countered, heat flushing her cheeks. He called her *weak* — not just in front of their squad, but in front of *them*.
Sawyer lunged between them, grabbing Tynan's collar. "Don't ever say that about a squadmate, especially not in front of unbonded dragons."
"Let him go — he's just saying what we're all thinking," Luca muttered.
Violet turned slowly to stare at her. Was this what happened to them the second they were out of hearing range of any superior? They turned on each other.
"What?" Luca gestured to Violet's hair. "Half your hair is silver and you're... petite. Golden and... small. You match."
Trina put her hand on Sawyer's arm. "Don't make a mistake in front of them. We don't know what they'll do," she whispered.
Now they were grouped up. Violet shuffled backward as Sawyer dropped Tynan's collar.
"Someone should kill it before it bonds," Tynan sputtered. "It's just going to get its rider killed, and it's not like we get a choice if it wants to bond us."
For the first time in her life, Violet actually wanted to kick someone while they were down — and keep kicking until they stayed down.
"You're just picking up on that now, are you?" Ridoc shook his head.
"We should go back," Pryor said, his gaze darting around. "I mean... if you think we should. We don't have to, of course."
"For once in your life, make a damn decision, Pryor," Tynan said, pushing past him to start down the path.
They took off one by one, leaving the suggested space between them. Rhiannon went before Violet; Ridoc followed behind; Luca brought up the rear.
"They're pretty incredible, aren't they?" Ridoc said, and the wonder in his voice made Violet smile.
"They are," she agreed.
"They're honestly a little underwhelming after seeing that blue at Parapet." Luca's voice carried all the way to Rhiannon, who turned around with an incredulous look.
"Like this isn't stressful enough without you insulting them?" Rhi asked.
Violet needed to defuse this quickly. "I mean, it could be worse. We could be walking past a line of wyvern, right?"
"Oh please, Violet, do give us one of your nervous-babble story times," Luca said sarcastically. "Let me guess. Wyvern are some elite squad of gryphon riders created because of something we did at a battle only you can manage to remember with your scribe brain."
"You don't know what a wyvern is?" Rhi asked, then began walking again. "Didn't your parents tell you bedtime stories, Luca?"
"Do enlighten me," Luca drawled.
Violet rolled her eyes, continuing along the path. "They're folklore," she said over her shoulder. "Kind of like dragons but bigger, with two feet instead of four, a mane of razor-sharp feathers streaking down their necks, and a taste for humans. Unlike dragons, who think we're a little gamey."
"My mom used to love telling my sister Raegan and me that we'd be plucked right off the front porch by one if we talked back, and their eerie-eyed venin riders would take us prisoner if we took treats we weren't allowed to have," Rhi said, flashing a grin at Violet, and Violet couldn't help but notice her step was lighter.
Mine was, too. Violet noticed each dragon as they passed, but her heartbeat steadied. "My dad used to read to me those fables every night," she told Rhi. "And I seriously asked him one time if Mom was going to turn into a venin because she could channel."
Rhiannon chuckled as they walked by a set of glaring reds. "Did he tell you people supposedly only turn into venin if they channel directly from the source?"
"He did, but it was after my mom had a really long night while we were stationed near the eastern border, and her eyes were bloodshot red, so I freaked out and started shrieking." Violet smiled at the memory. "She took my book of fables away for a *month* because the outpost guards all came running, and I was hiding behind my brother, who couldn't stop laughing, and, well... it was a mess."
Rhiannon's shoulders shook with laughter. "I wish we'd had a book like that. I seriously think Mom just altered the stories to scare us whenever we stepped out of line."
"That sounds like some border-village nonsense," Luca scoffed. "Venin? Wyvern? Anyone with a modicum of education knows that our wards stop all magic that isn't channeled directly from dragons."
"They're *stories*, Luca," Rhi said over her shoulder. "Pryor, you can walk a little faster if you want up there."
"Maybe we should slow down and take our time?" Pryor suggested, rubbing his palms along his uniform. "Or I guess we can go faster if we want to get out of here."
A red stepped out of line, putting one claw forward toward them. Violet's stomach dropped to the ground.
"No, no, no," she whispered, freezing in place.
But it was too late.
The red opened its mouth, exposing sharp, glistening fangs, and fire erupted along the sides of its tongue, streaming through the air and into the path directly ahead of Rhiannon.
She yelled in shock.
Heat blasted the front of Violet's face.
Then it was over.
The scent of sulfur and burned grass burned her lungs. A charred patch of ground sat in front of Rhiannon where nothing had been before.
"Are you all right, Rhi?" Violet called forward.
Rhiannon nodded, but the movement was jerky. "Pryor is... He's..."
*Pryor's dead.* Violet's mouth watered like she was going to vomit. She breathed in through her nose and out through her mouth until the feeling passed.
"Keep walking!" Sawyer shouted from farther down the path.
"It's all right, Rhi. You just have to..." Violet trailed off. She just had to *what*? Walk over his corpse? Was there even a corpse?
"Fire's out," Rhiannon said over her shoulder.
Violet nodded, because there was nothing she could say. Holy shit, how insignificant they were. She walked forward, maneuvering around the pile of ash that used to be Pryor.
"Oh my gods, the *smell*," Luca complained.
"Could you please have some level of decency?" Violet snapped, turning around to glare — but Ridoc's face made her pause.
His eyes were wide as saucers, and his mouth hung open. "Violet."
It was a whisper. She wondered if she'd heard him as much as seen the word on his lips.
"Vi—"
A warm huff of steam blew against the back of her neck.
Her heart thundered. Her pulse went erratic. She took what might have been her last breath and turned toward the line of dragons.
The golden eyes of not one but two greens met hers, consuming her field of vision.
*Oh. Fuck.*
"To approach a green dragon, lower your eyes in supplication and wait for their approval." That's what she'd read, right?
She dropped her gaze as one chuffed another breath at her. It was hot and appallingly wet, but she wasn't dead yet. That was a plus.
The one on the right chortled deep in its throat. Was that the sound of approval? She wished she'd asked Mira.
*Mira.* She was going to be devastated when she read the rolls.
Violet lifted her head and sucked in a sharp breath. They were even closer. The one on the left nudged her hands with its giant nose. Somehow she stood her ground, rocking back on her heels to keep from falling.
Greens were the most reasonable.
"I cut my hands climbing the obstacle course." She lifted her palms, as if they could see through the black fabric binding her wounds.
The one on the right set its nose right at her breasts and chuffed again. *What the hell.*
It inhaled, making that noise in its throat, and the other shoved its nose into her ribs. Violet raised her arms just in case they felt like nibbling.
"Violet!" Rhiannon whisper-shouted.
"I'm all right!" Violet called back, then winced, hoping she hadn't just sealed her fate by screaming in their ears.
Another chuff. Another chortle, like they were talking to each other as they sniffed her.
The one under her arm moved its nostrils to her back and sniffed again.
Realization hit, and Violet choked out a tight, surreal laugh. "You smell Teine, don't you?" she asked quietly.
They both drew back, just far enough for her to look them in their golden eyes, but they kept their jaws shut. It gave her the courage to keep talking.
"I'm Mira's sister, Violet." Slowly lowering her arms, she ran her hands over her snot-covered vest and the armor carefully sewn into it. "She collected Teine's scales after he shed them last year and had them shrunk down so she could sew them into the vest to help keep me safe."
The one on the right blinked.
The one on the left stuck its nose in again, sniffing loudly.
"The scales have saved me a few times," Violet whispered. "But no one else knows they're in there. Just Mira and Teine."
They both blinked at her. She lowered her gaze, bowing her head because it felt like the right thing to do. Professor Kaori had taught them every way to approach a dragon and exactly zero ways to disengage one.
Step by step, the two greens retreated until they took their places in line in her peripheral vision.
Violet finally raised her head, taking several deep breaths, trying to lock her muscles so she wouldn't tremble.
"Violet." Rhiannon was only a few feet away, terror in her eyes. She must have been right behind the dragons' heads.
"I'm fine." Violet forced a smile and nodded. "I have dragon-scale armor under the vest," she whispered. "They smell my sister's dragon." If Rhiannon wanted trust, here it was. "Please don't tell anyone."
"I won't," Rhiannon whispered. "You're all right?"
"Other than having a few years of my life shaved off." Violet laughed, the sound shaky, bordering on hysteria.
"Let's get out of here." Rhiannon swallowed, her gaze darting toward the line of dragons.
"Good idea."
Rhiannon turned and walked back to her place. Once there was fifteen feet between them, Violet followed.
"I think I just shat myself," Ridoc said, and Violet's laughter only pitched higher as they moved through the field.
"Honestly, I thought they were going to eat you," Luca remarked.
"Me too," Violet admitted.
"I wouldn't have blamed them," Luca continued. "You're insufferable," Ridoc called back.
Violet focused on the path and kept walking.
"What? She's obviously our weakest link after Pryor, and I don't blame them for snuffing him out," Luca argued. "He could never make a decision, and no one wants someone like that as their rider—"
A blast of heat singed Violet's back, and she halted.
*Don't be Ridoc. Don't be—*
"Guess the dragons think she's insufferable, too," Ridoc muttered.
Their squad was down to six first-years.
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And then came Threshing.
October first was always Threshing. Monday, Wednesday, or Sunday — it didn't matter where it fell in any given year. On the first of October, first-year cadets of the Riders Quadrant entered the bowl-shaped forested valley to the southwest of the citadel and prayed they came out alive.
*I will not die today.*
Violet hadn't eaten that morning. She pitied Ridoc, who was currently heaving up the contents of his stomach against a tree to her right. A sword was strapped to Rhiannon's back, the hilt jostling against her spine as she bounced, stretching her arms across her chest one at a time.
"Remember to listen here," Professor Kaori said from in front of the one hundred forty-seven cadets, tapping his chest. "If a dragon has already selected you, they'll be calling." He thumped his chest again. "So pay attention to not just your surroundings but your feelings, and go with them." He grimaced. "And if your feelings are telling you to go in the other direction... listen to that, too."
"Which one are you going for?" Rhiannon asked quietly.
"I don't know." Violet shook her head but couldn't ditch the feeling of absolute failure in her chest. At this point, Mira had known she wanted to seek out Teine.
"You memorized the cards, right?" Rhiannon asked, lifting her brows. "So you know what's out there?"
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And there the chapter leaves us — standing at the edge of Threshing, staring into a forest that is more grave than hunting ground. Violet Sorrengail has survived the Gauntlet and walked the gauntlet of dragon fire, but now she must face the ultimate test: to win a dragon, or die trying. The odds are against her. Her body is fragile. Her enemies are many. But somewhere in that valley, a golden feathertail might just be waiting...
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## Reader's Impressions & Star Rating
This chapter is absolutely breathtaking. The Presentation sequence had me holding my breath from the moment the red dragon's fire scorched the ground. Watching Violet stand her ground against those two greens — while they sniffed out her sister's dragon-scale armor — was one of the most visceral and emotional moments in the book so far. The casual cruelty of Tynan and Luca, the sudden death of Pryor, the strange haunting presence of the little golden feathertail... everything builds toward a tension that feels both terrifying and exhilarating. And then the final kick: Threshing begins, and Violet's future is totally unknown. I loved every second of this.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Rating: 4.9 / 5 Stars
## Next Chapter Prediction
I predict that next chapter will plunge us headfirst into the chaos of Threshing. The golden feathertail will almost certainly find Violet — perhaps because it already recognized her courage, or maybe because the dragons have their own mysterious plans. Tynan and Luca will likely cause more trouble, and I suspect Xaden will appear at a critical moment, either to warn Violet or to intervene. The forest will hide deadly dangers, and Violet's scribe-trained knowledge will be her only weapon. I also expect some kind of shocking dragon bond — possibly one that no one predicted.
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