The Dawn of Dae (Dae Portals Book 1) by Trillian Anderson Page B
Authors: Trillian Anderson
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worry about what Rob’s touch did—and didn’t—do to me once I finished my job, which was to grade Claudia.
So far, she was by far the strongest fire-breather I’d ever seen, and she frightened the hell out of me. I held my breath, afraid the heated air would scorch my lungs, if it hadn’t already.
Watching bonfires was common in the winter in the fringe, and like a disintegrating log, Claudia’s inferno consumed her. The crack-pop of wood heralded her crumbling to embers, which the winds captured and carried upward. She spiraled to the sky, and as she cooled, she drifted to the ground in a pale ash.
With nothing left to burn, the pure flames snuffed out, leaving behind wafting smoke in its wake and blackened ground where a woman had stood.
My breath caught in my throat. Little remained of Claudia. The gathered dae stared at where she had burned. I shook my head, turning my attention to my desk.
It was as charred as the ground she had stood on, and in a circle twenty feet across, the grass had likewise turned gray and was smoking.
Rob sighed and shook his head. “Really. Can’t you take care of yourself for even a few minutes?”
Securing my hold on the laptop with one hand, I balled the other in a fist, and threw a punch at the smug dae’s face. He caught my hand in his, and laughing at me, he worked his fingers between mine, squeezing until I made a pained noise and my fingers splayed.
I don’t know how he did it, but he stole my glove. Stepping out of my reach, he spun around and waved my glove at me in farewell, striding off in the direction of the administration buildings. I glared at his departing back, torn between chasing after him and giving him a piece of my mind and getting as far away from him as possible. Shuddering, I spun around, staring at the destruction and wondering how I was going to explain what had happened.
A woman had died trying to prove she was worthy of becoming an elite, and if it hadn’t been for Rob, I’d have a lot more than a few singes and overheated skin to show for witnessing her fiery demise.
Word of Claudia’s death spread fast, but I was too busy scrambling to prepare for the resumption of interviews to listen to the muttered gossip. The laptop had been spared—mostly—from the heat of her flames. The casing had melted, but one of the college’s techies managed to salvage all of the data and give me a new system in less than half an hour, which was how long it took the police to calm everyone down.
While I was waiting for the police to organize the next batch of hopefuls to try to squeeze out a few more runs before curfew, I inventoried my injuries.
I had gotten lucky; I had a few new burns to add to my growing collection, but I otherwise emerged reasonably unscathed. At least I didn’t have to pay for the treatment or the ointments to heal them without scarring.
Where Rob had touched my elbow, his sweat had soaked through my shirt. Unlike the rest of my arm, which was reddened from exposure to the heat, the skin he had touched remained unblemished. I glanced around, but saw no sign of the dae. The thought of him boiled my blood.
Despite my irritation with him, I spent a long time staring at my elbow, wondering what was going on and why Rob, who had invaded my apartment and kept showing up at the absolute worst time, didn’t make me break out in rashes or hives when he touched me.
Narrowing my eyes, I considered whether or not I could capture him, study him, and find a cure for my affliction.
If he was going to be underfoot and in my way, at least he could be useful.
I grimaced at the fire-scorched ground, which reminded me that no matter how much he annoyed me, he had prevented me from sharing Claudia’s fate. I’d choke on it, but the next time I saw him, I’d thank him—and make certain he was fully aware I was not his property and would never be his property.
I had survived living in the fringe without completely selling myself, and I had no
So far, she was by far the strongest fire-breather I’d ever seen, and she frightened the hell out of me. I held my breath, afraid the heated air would scorch my lungs, if it hadn’t already.
Watching bonfires was common in the winter in the fringe, and like a disintegrating log, Claudia’s inferno consumed her. The crack-pop of wood heralded her crumbling to embers, which the winds captured and carried upward. She spiraled to the sky, and as she cooled, she drifted to the ground in a pale ash.
With nothing left to burn, the pure flames snuffed out, leaving behind wafting smoke in its wake and blackened ground where a woman had stood.
My breath caught in my throat. Little remained of Claudia. The gathered dae stared at where she had burned. I shook my head, turning my attention to my desk.
It was as charred as the ground she had stood on, and in a circle twenty feet across, the grass had likewise turned gray and was smoking.
Rob sighed and shook his head. “Really. Can’t you take care of yourself for even a few minutes?”
Securing my hold on the laptop with one hand, I balled the other in a fist, and threw a punch at the smug dae’s face. He caught my hand in his, and laughing at me, he worked his fingers between mine, squeezing until I made a pained noise and my fingers splayed.
I don’t know how he did it, but he stole my glove. Stepping out of my reach, he spun around and waved my glove at me in farewell, striding off in the direction of the administration buildings. I glared at his departing back, torn between chasing after him and giving him a piece of my mind and getting as far away from him as possible. Shuddering, I spun around, staring at the destruction and wondering how I was going to explain what had happened.
A woman had died trying to prove she was worthy of becoming an elite, and if it hadn’t been for Rob, I’d have a lot more than a few singes and overheated skin to show for witnessing her fiery demise.
Word of Claudia’s death spread fast, but I was too busy scrambling to prepare for the resumption of interviews to listen to the muttered gossip. The laptop had been spared—mostly—from the heat of her flames. The casing had melted, but one of the college’s techies managed to salvage all of the data and give me a new system in less than half an hour, which was how long it took the police to calm everyone down.
While I was waiting for the police to organize the next batch of hopefuls to try to squeeze out a few more runs before curfew, I inventoried my injuries.
I had gotten lucky; I had a few new burns to add to my growing collection, but I otherwise emerged reasonably unscathed. At least I didn’t have to pay for the treatment or the ointments to heal them without scarring.
Where Rob had touched my elbow, his sweat had soaked through my shirt. Unlike the rest of my arm, which was reddened from exposure to the heat, the skin he had touched remained unblemished. I glanced around, but saw no sign of the dae. The thought of him boiled my blood.
Despite my irritation with him, I spent a long time staring at my elbow, wondering what was going on and why Rob, who had invaded my apartment and kept showing up at the absolute worst time, didn’t make me break out in rashes or hives when he touched me.
Narrowing my eyes, I considered whether or not I could capture him, study him, and find a cure for my affliction.
If he was going to be underfoot and in my way, at least he could be useful.
I grimaced at the fire-scorched ground, which reminded me that no matter how much he annoyed me, he had prevented me from sharing Claudia’s fate. I’d choke on it, but the next time I saw him, I’d thank him—and make certain he was fully aware I was not his property and would never be his property.
I had survived living in the fringe without completely selling myself, and I had no
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