She spun higher, making Rahkki so dizzy he laughed. Then she evened out and flew to the highest altitude his small body could tolerate. The Realm stretched below, a sea of green leaves and valleys, bursting rivers, and engorged lakes. She spied herds of deer and buffalo. Far to the south, mountains stretched toward the sky. Storm Herd would cross those peaks in the coming moon as they traveled toward their new home.
Echofrost dipped and rose in sudden starts, surprising and exciting her cub. He patted her silver neck, encouraging her, so she broke into a free fall, diving straight down. He screamed with delight as they glided faster and faster. She tucked her wings. The Realm rushed toward them, the trees growing larger, the land broader. The sky shrank behind them. Rahkki squinted, a happy grin on his face.
She snapped out her wings and lifted her nose. They sped parallel to the trees, her hooves grazing the uppermost branches. Rahkki sat tall and spread his arms, as if he were flying too. Tears rolled down his cheeks. He didn’t bother to wipe them away.
Echofrost spotted Leshi Creek and sank toward it. She touched down so lightly that it took her cub a moment to realize they’d landed. She dropped her head and drank while he lay across her, hugging her neck. “I love you,” he said, crying harder now.
She arched her neck and pressed her forehead to his. He calmed and inhaled her warm breath. Then he slipped off her back, his hand lingering between her wings. He stroked her shoulder. “I’m sorry about this,” he whispered, tracing her brand.
She sensed his sorrow and shook her mane. Rahkki should be happy. Everything had worked out for him, hadn’t it? She dipped her feathers into the creek and splashed him.
“You didn’t!” He splashed her back.
She reared and stomped the water, soaking him.
He ran behind and pulled her tail. She whirled and chased him. They trotted through the jungle, hiding and catching each other. They darted around trees, leaped out of bushes, tangled each other in vines. It turned into a game of tag, and Echofrost was surprised he knew how to play her foalhood game. They were each “it” many times. She nickered when he leaped out of a tree and missed her, landing on his face. He laughed when she reached for him and caught air as he swung away on a vine.
Echofrost had missed playing! Most of her life had been spent fighting and hiding and fleeing—in Anok and here in the Realm. She halted suddenly and gazed south—her longing for her new home swelled hard within her, catching her off guard. Rahkki bumped into her and settled, catching his breath.
They stood together for a long time, their hearts beating the same rhythm. This cub had taught her to trust him. Of all the pegasi in Storm Herd, she was the least likely to trust anyone, let alone a Landwalker. With a burst of feelings, Echofrost understood how far she’d come since their first days together—how far she’d come since fleeing Anok.
She’d been stubborn, selfish, bitter, and afraid. She’d kept her friends at wing’s length. But somehow, this boy had squirmed into her heart and created a space for himself. She hadn’t wanted him there, had fought hard against his imposition, but he’d believed in her—he’d believed in them both—and they’d become friends.
Echofrost nuzzled Rahkki as the sun’s warm rays stretched toward them. The crickets began their song in anticipation of evening, and the birds flew with furious joy that the rains had ended.
With nothing but affection between them, the Pair turned and walked back to Rahkki’s home. She would leave him there, with his family, and then fly south to start a new life, with hers.
Acknowledgments
THANK YOU, DEAR READER, FOR TRAVELING through the Realm with me! It was challenging to write a series starring three groups of creatures—pegasi, humans, and giants—who all speak different languages, but it was also very rewarding. My characters worked hard to understand one another’s languages and cultures in order to come to peaceful terms. This series might be shelved under fantasy, but fear and misunderstanding of others is dangerous in all worlds, real and fictional. I enjoyed watching my characters learn and grow and slowly become friends.
If you haven’t read the Guardian Herd series yet, I invite you to do so! There you will meet a special black foal named Star who is born unable to fly but is destined to inherit great power. This makes him a threat to the five herds of Anok and causes the leaders to unite against him. With his best friends, Morningleaf, Echofrost, and Bumblewind, and a few brave adult pegasi, Star must try to survive to his first birthday. For more information about Riders of the Realm and the Guardian Herd, please visit www.theguardianherd.com. There you can play herd games, view the characters, read interviews, view fan art and fan pets, and take quizzes!
Finally, I’d like to thank my primary editor, Karen Chaplin, who has worked on all seven of my pegasi books! Her clever insights and thoughtful suggestions have been invaluable in shaping these stories. And to the entire team at HarperCollins Children’s, led by the incomparable Rosemary Brosnan, thank you for bringing these manuscripts to life with art, distribution, marketing, sales, printing, and your passion for books! Special thanks to David McClellan for producing all the interior art for both series and the gorgeous covers for the Guardian Herd, and to Vivienne To for her dramatic Riders of the Realm covers.
To my readers, if you’d like to help each series soar, please write reviews of the books online and request your local libraries to carry them. There is no better way to support an author than to spread the word!
For my family, friends, and the series’ fans, thank you for dreaming with me.
About the Author
Photo credit Nick Alvarez
JENNIFER LYNN ALVAREZ received a degree in English literature from UC Berkeley. She is an active horsewoman, a volunteer for the US Pony Club, and a proud mother of three children. She’s also the author of the Guardian Herd series, fantasy novels starring wild pegasi. Jennifer draws on her lifelong love of animals when writing her books, and when she’s not at her computer, Jennifer can be found riding her beloved mare Maddie (pictured above). She lives on a small ranch in Northern California with her husband, children, and more than her fair share of pets. Follow Jennifer on Twitter @JenniferDiaries or on Instagram @jennifer_lynn_alvarez. And to learn more about her winged universe of novels, please visit www.theguardianherd.com.
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Praise
Praise for Riders of the Realm: Across the Dark Water
“A story with both wings and heart, Across the Dark Water is a breathtaking ride into a rich and dangerous world. Animal lovers and thrill-seekers alike will cheer for Echofrost and Rahkki at each of the many twists and turns. Clever, epic, and wildly imaginative!”
—Kamilla Benko, author of The Unicorn Quest
“An epic adventure that moves at the speed of flight. Thrilling, compelling, and completely enchanting. I fell in love with the Storm Herd, and one particular winged steed that Pegasus himself would fall for!”
—Kate O’Hearn, author of the international bestselling Pegasus series
“Exhilarating! A well-woven tale full of loyalty, bravery, danger, and love. Readers will be delighted!”
—Lindsay Cummings, New York Times bestselling author of the Balance Keepers series
“A riveting, richly imagined epic tale of loyalty, bravery, and friendship that will make your heart (literally!) soar—a pulse-pounding adventure! Jennifer Lynn Alvarez is a true master of her craft.”
—Kristen Kittscher, author of The Wig in the Window and The Tiara on the Terrace
“Getting swept up in Jennifer Lynn Alvarez’s rich world of flying steeds, Landwalkers, giants, and spit dragons was the most fun I’ve had all year. It’s like How to Train Your Dragon meets Watership Down. But with pegasi. A fantastic read!”
—John Kloepfer, author of the Zombie Chasers series and the Galaxy’s Most Wanted series
“Honor and courage soar on every page of Jennifer Lynn Alvarez’s books!”
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�Jenn Reese, author of the Above World trilogy
“A beautiful tale of loyalty, adventure, and bravery. Readers will want to soar through the clouds with Echofrost and befriend kindhearted Rahkki. Across the Dark Water is a captivating opener to the Riders of the Realm trilogy.”
—Jill Diamond, author of the Lou Lou and Pea series
“Gorgeously detailed and with heart-wrenching conflict, Across the Dark Water is a breathtaking read sure to please new fans and old. Jennifer Lynn Alvarez’s fantasy world is richly developed with a cast of characters readers will be sure to love, both winged and human. I read it as fast as a pegasus can fly and am already longing for more.”
—Mindee Arnett, critically acclaimed author of Onyx & Ivory
Praise for the Guardian Herd series
“From page one, Jennifer Lynn Alvarez weaves an epic tale of a doomed black pegasus foal named Star, whose race against time will lift the reader on the wings of danger and destiny, magic and hope. It’s a world I did not want to leave, and neither will you.”
—Peter Lerangis, New York Times bestselling author in the 39 Clues series and of the Seven Wonders series
“Perfect for fans of Charlotte’s Web and the Guardians of Ga’Hoole series.”
—ALA Booklist
“Chock-full of adventure and twists, making it difficult to put down. Readers will be clamoring for the next book.”
—School Library Journal
“Alvarez’s world is lush with description and atmosphere.”
—Publishers Weekly
“Will prove popular with both animal-lovers and fantasy fans. A good choice for reluctant readers. The clever resolution will get kids psyched for more tales from the Guardian Herd.”
—ALA Booklist
“Filled with fantastical action, and rich with description. A well-paced and engrossing story. Alvarez has created a series that will be beloved by readers.”
—VOYA
Books by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez
Riders of the Realm 1: Across the Dark Water
Riders of the Realm 2: Through the Untamed Sky
The Guardian Herd: Starfire
The Guardian Herd: Stormbound
The Guardian Herd: Landfall
The Guardian Herd: Windborn
Copyright
RIDERS OF THE REALM: BENEATH THE WEEPING CLOUDS. Text copyright © 2019 by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez. Illustrations copyright © 2019 by David McClellan. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.
www.harpercollinschildrens.com
COVER ART © 2019 BY VIVIENNE TO
COVER DESIGN BY CATHERINE SAN JUAN
Digital Edition NOVEMBER 2019 ISBN: 978-0-06-249444-3
Print ISBN: 978-0-06-249441-2
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Alvarez, Jennifer Lynn, author.
Title: Beneath the weeping clouds / by Jennifer Lynn Alvarez.
Description: First edition. | New York, NY : HarperCollins, [2019] | Series: Riders of the realm ; 3 | Summary: “Storm Herd will have to join forces with the humans they have long-feared to save Rahkki and defeat the giants”— Provided by publisher.
Identifiers: LCCN 2019009523 | ISBN 978-0-06-249441-2 (hardback)
Subjects: | CYAC: Horses—Fiction. | Animals, Mythical—Fiction. | Giants—Fiction. | Adventure and adventurers—Fiction. | Fantasy. | BISAC: JUVENILE FICTION / Fantasy & Magic. | JUVENILE FICTION / Action & Adventure / General. | JUVENILE FICTION / Animals / Horses.
Classification: LCC PZ7.A4797 Be 2019 | DDC [Fic]—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019009523
* * *
1920212223PC/LSCH10987654321
FIRST EDITION
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