by Shea Berkley
“Kera,” I yell, but she doesn’t stop. “Damn it, Kera! Stop!”
What the hell is wrong with her? She just said she got what she’s always wanted. Why is she acting like it’s the worst thing ever? No, like I’m the worst thing ever.
The screen door slams again and Grandpa stops next to me. His hand falls on my shoulder. “What’s all the yelling about?”
His hand feels heavy, restraining. Controlling. I’m not one of his war buddies he can boss around. I’ve got things under control. I shrug his hand off. “I don’t know, she just left.”
That she didn’t stop when I called irritates me far more than it should, but I can’t help it. She should listen to me. Bad stuff happens because she doesn’t listen. I take off after her amid Grandpa’s call to leave well enough alone. Anger bubbles up inside me, and I flip him off before I slam the back gate open and head for the woods.
I should’ve known using the bird was a bad idea. Grandpa’s not one to let an insult lie. Being a cop, and a kick-ass war veteran, he expects to be shown some respect. And he should. He’s earned it. But I’m not in the mood to humor anyone, and now I’m getting chased down by a guy who knows how to kill a man with his bare hands without the use of any magic. That scares even me.
There’s only one thing to do. I speed up. If a guy has powers, he should use them, and I race away from Grandpa, following the scent of summer with an underlying aroma of burned sugar, a sure sign of Kera’s sorrow and fear. That she might be afraid of me, of what I can do, doesn’t sit well. It doesn’t matter how fast I run, I can’t seem to catch her. I pause in a clearing and reach out with my senses. Her trail has suddenly gone cold. I call, yelling her name over and over. She doesn’t answer. It’s like Mom all over again. One minute you’re talking, the next she disappears without an explanation. Why am I always the one getting left behind?
The heat I felt on the swing swirls in my belly and crawls under my skin. My new power rockets through me so easily, driving up my frustration and anger. In no time, fire erupts, engulfing my whole body. I’m a walking torch. The ground beneath my feet sizzles and smokes. This isn’t good. I know it, but I can’t stop. This isn’t me.
This uncontrollable monster that I’ve become since finding out I’m a first isn’t me.
A sudden whack, and a burst of pain explodes in my head. I crumple to my knees before I pass out. When I claw my way back to consciousness, I’m bobbing upside down through the forest. The ugly work boots. The worn jeans. I know who’s carrying me. Grandpa has me slung over his shoulder. I struggle to be free, but he slams his meaty palm on my backside. “Settle down. You, son, are a problem no one around here can afford to ignore.”
I’m a problem? Great. I get how being dumped unexpectedly on their porch without them knowing I existed would test their hospitality. And when they found out I wasn’t even human, well…that would give anyone second thoughts. Deep down, I knew it was only a matter of time before the newness of having me around wore off and he’d want me gone, but honestly, I didn’t think it would happen this soon. Did Grandma feel the same?
“What do you mean?” I say, my throat raw, my voice thick.
“Don’t tell me you don’t remember.”
I don’t. The pain in my head is killing me. I gingerly touch the back of my head and the lump that’s there. “Did you hit me?”
“Damn straight, I did. You were mad as hell and burning a hole in the ground. I’m not overexaggerating when I say you could’ve burned down another stretch of forest with that trick. I’m putting the law down right here, right now. Fire is off-limits. Do you hear me?”
“What are you talking about?”
Grandpa stops and dumps me on my feet, steadying me so I won’t fall. I spy the house through the trees. The old man has nearly carried me all the way home. I’m impressed and a little surprised. I take a good look at him.
A deep scowl digs into his face. “Your imitation of the burning man…you don’t remember doing that?”
“No.”
“Kera running off. You following. Me following you because—”
“I flipped you the bird.” I’m an idiot. A flaming hotheaded idiot.
“So you remember now.”
“Sorry. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. I’m not like that. I never get mad.”
“Well, you do now, and I’m not too keen on the new you.”
“Trust me. Neither am I.” The woods are silent and I don’t like what that implies. “Did you see Kera?”
“Nope. We’ll see her when she wants to be seen.”
That kind of blind faith freaks me out. I’ve got to let go and believe he’s right.
Whatever Kera was trying to tell me, I think I understand a bit of it. “Ever since I went to Teag, things are different. Inside me. And now there’s this fire. It showed up out of the blue.”
Grandpa grabs my arm and pulls up my T-shirt sleeve to reveal the glowing silver brand. The death mark Sidon the Torturer gave me. Grandpa’s fingers brush it, and he pulls away. “Still hot. Whatever’s going on, it’s not natural. But that doesn’t mean you give in to your emotions like a spoiled brat.”
He’s right, but I don’t like hearing it. I push down my sleeve, disturbed to see it glowing. It’s never done that before. In fact, it’s glowing so brightly now, it singes the material of my sleeve. I pull the fabric back up.
Grandpa’s voice turns rough. “What’s going on with that?”
“I don’t know.” The whole thing is smoking. I rub it, and when I do, the ground beneath our feet rumbles, shaking pine needles from the nearby trees, then stops.
Grandpa assesses the nearby damage and looks back at me, at my hand hovering over the glowing mark. “Tell me you didn’t do that.”
“No.” At least I don’t think I did. I take a deep breath and let it slowly out. The glow of my silver brand is fading, and I feel calm now.
Suddenly my brand flares, and the previous rumble seems tame compared to the deep shakes that toss us off our feet. Grandpa finds his footing, grabs the back of my shirt and yanks me to my feet. “Move it!” he yells.
I barely get ten feet away when the ground opens up and a fleshy pink spike spins its way out of the ground. Covered in loose dirt and as long as a city bus, it slips its body forward. A flap near the base of the spike flips up to reveal a huge eye. Blue as the sky, the eye looks around until it falls on me. The spike cracks open and spits forth more than a dozen bloodred tongues. Grandpa lets go of me and we split apart, each diving out of the way as the tongues snap toward us.
The house is so close. If I could just make it there and get my sword, I could do some real damage to this thing. Even as I think it, I see Kera racing toward us, my sword in her hand and a look of panic on her face. Grandma, Leo, the only friend I have besides Kera, and Leo’s dad, Reggie, are right behind her.
The creature’s head turns my way, its tongues lashing the air and scouring deep grooves into the tree trunks as it does. Grandpa grabs a long, thin, pointed tree branch and chucks it Spartan-style at the creature’s eye. A glasslike film closes over the eye at the last second and the branch bounces away. I bend fully grown trees and slam them on its wriggling back, but a thick armor lies under the dirt clinging to its body.
“Forget what I said before,” Grandpa yells. “Fire up, son.”
I call fire to my palm and spit a thin stream at the monster. Not even a scorch mark appears. I try several more times with the same results. What the hell is wrong with me that when I need to bring the heat, nothing happens?
Kera throws my sword, tip over hilt, and it lands in the dirt at my feet. I pick it up and it flames to life. I spin free of one of the tongues, whirl around, and sear the tongue off. The creature lets out a mournful scream. I may have hurt it, but I’ve also ticked it off.
Reggie reaches Grandpa and chucks him a huge pump-action shotgun that holds ten rounds and a box of slugs. They each lock their bullets in their chambers, point, and fire. The gunsh
ots split the air, again and again as they circle the monster, trying to find a weak spot, but its armor is too thick.
One of the tongues wraps around Leo’s left arm. He stabs a sturdy kitchen knife into the tough flesh of the tongue and slips free. Yet his skin is red where the tongue had been, like he’s been attacked by a jellyfish, and he doubles over in pain. Reggie is beside his son in an instant. His back is to the monster, a big mistake. I speed their way, and just as a tongue is about to grab him, I slash it clean through. Reggie whips around, his shotgun primed and aimed at me. There’s a flash of indecision, no thanks for saving his life, only wondering if he should end mine. I don’t stay close, and I, refocus on the monster. Another tongue lashes out and lifts Grandpa into the air. He fires his shotgun and shatters the monster’s eye shield.
The multi-tongued glorified worm opens its mouth wide as it brings Grandpa close. Somehow Grandpa reloads and empties his rounds into the monster. “I’m out of ammo,” he yells and tomahawks the gun into the monster’s gaping maw.
Grandma screams and a look of horror clouds her face. She thinks he’ll die, but I won’t let that happen.
A rush of anger starts to burn in my gut. I run and jump, cutting through the base of several tongues, praying one of them holds Grandpa. Another unearthly cry rips the air and Grandpa is quickly slammed to the ground and rolls, cradling his arm as if it’s been broken. Grandma rushes to him and helps him hobble free of the fight.
I whip around and search for Kera. I see Reggie pushing Leo behind him, yelling at his son that he’s too hurt to fight. Grandma has Grandpa, and Kera is…
I finally see her atop the monster’s back, slowly making her way to the monster’s head. “What are you doing?” I yell at her.
She steadies herself as the armored body wriggles beneath her feet. “Blinding it.”
It’s then I see the incordium dagger in her hand. The special blade can cut through any magic, but it looks too small to do much damage. Another tongue lashes toward me and I fight it off, feeling the bite of its sting as I do. When next I look up, the monster bucks, and Kera goes flying. As she falls, she stabs her blade deeply into its head and jerks to a stop. The creature howls and bucks and wriggles in pain while Kera dangles over the open mouth, fighting to pull herself clear.
A tongue lashes up, slaps around one of her legs, and pulls her high into the air, flipping her upside down. Kera gasps against the sting of the tongue on her bare leg, and I see her fight to not scream.
Grandma cries out and turns her head into Grandpa’s shoulder, unable to look. Heat bursts along my skin, and the fire I’d struggled to find suddenly engulfs my hand. Without me even thinking, fire erupts out of me. One fireball after another blasts the monster as I run forward. The creature rumbles with pain, and I feed off that emotion, growing stronger and hotter until I’m on full burn mode.
One moment I’m staring at the monster, the next I’m on my knees, dizzy and gasping for breath. All around me, the earth is burning. I have no idea what just happened. The monster smolders as it sounds a final cry, and Kera is falling. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Reggie dash forward and catch Kera. They both fall to the ground and roll away, just in time to avoid being crushed by the burning carcass. As I move toward them, Reggie pulls Kera to the side and points his gun at me. “Stay back!”
Kera peeks over Reggie’s shoulder, her eyes big as saucers. I stop. The anger melts in me, and I’m just Dylan with no burn, no heat… just confused.
Kera tries to come to me, but Reggie holds her back. “Don’t go near him. Did you see what he did? He almost killed you.”
I can’t believe my ears, but he’s right. In trying to save Kera, I nearly killed her. I feel sick inside. “Kera, I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened.”
Kera pulls out of Reggie’s hold and comes to me. She touches my chest above my heart. “I’m fine. Really.” She smells of singed hair and skin. I did that to her.
I pull her to me and hug her tightly and say over and over again that I’m sorry.
Grandpa, with Grandma and Leo’s help, hobbles from the forest. Grandma stares at the monster and back at me. “Is everyone all right? I couldn’t look. What happened?”
Reggie storms over to Grandpa, and the look he gives him conveys his disgust. He spears Leo with a hard look and orders him home. Without saying another word, he walks away.
Leo sweeps his thick mop of black hair out of his eyes and glances from me to his dad. “Don’t worry, bro. I got this. He’s freaked out, but he’ll settle down.” And then he trots after his dad.
Kera retrieves her dagger, and while Grandma makes sure Kera’s okay, Grandpa pulls me aside. I nod to his arm. “That doesn’t look good. You okay?”
He glances at where it’s beginning to turn purple from wrist to elbow. “It’s only a bruise. It’ll heal soon enough.”
The man has steel for bones. Seriously, anyone else would be crying like a baby.
He leans closer and lowers his voice so only I can hear. “That thing glommed on to you and only you.” He then gives me a thoughtful look and lifts my sleeve. My brand is normal silver. No glow. No burn. He cocks a heavy eyebrow at me. I know what he’s implying. The council still wants me dead. Did he really think so? After all I’ve done for Teag?
“No,” I whisper to him. “They’re not hunting me. Not anymore.”
“They’d better be, because if they aren’t, we’ve got even bigger trouble. I think your out-of-whack emotions are like a homing device. Tomorrow, we start your training.”
“What kind of training?”
“I’ve got an idea. You’ll see.” He lets go and turns to look at the smoldering monster. “What are we going to do with that? I’m all for barbecue, but the neighbors aren’t going to understand.”
No one’s arguing with him there. I tell everyone to back up, and then I split the ground open underneath the thing and bury it. We all stand there, silent and staring at the mound.
Grandma rubs her arms, as if she’s suddenly cold. “What do you suppose it wanted?”
“I suspect it wanted what every dumb animal wants,” Grandpa says in his gruff, no-nonsense voice. “It got hungry and wandered over.” He throws his arm around Grandma and hugs her close. “I know what you’re thinking. Stop it. Dylan and I will check things out, so no worrying, woman. Let’s go home. I’m suddenly longing for a hot shower and my easy chair.”
Grandma agrees and fusses over Grandpa’s arm, telling him she’ll make him his favorite chocolate cake. He gives her a big kiss on the cheek and throws us a wink. “Getting hurt isn’t so bad when there’s chocolate cake afterward.”
I wish I could agree, but if he’s right, I brought the monster here. It’s just one more thing I have to feel guilty about.
Kera and I lock hands and trudge after them.
“What are you thinking?” she asks.
“About me. About all this and how they’re linked, if they’re linked.” I glance at her, “They’re probably linked. Grandpa wants to help me control my emotions. He’s done nothing but help me since I’ve shown up. I’ve got to learn to trust him.”
It won’t be easy. In my whole entire life, there’s only one person I’ve learned to trust without question. Kera. I squeeze her fingers and she squeezes back. Without her, I’d be lost. Since I’ve found my powers, instead of making things easier, my life has gotten far more complicated. I try not to, but I can’t stop the flicker of hope that Grandpa can help me. I give her a quick recap of what happened after she ran from me, and finish just as we push through the back gate and into the yard. Grandma continues into the house, but before Grandpa goes inside, he asks me, “You okay?”
“Mostly.”
He throws a look that warns me to settle down. Honestly, does he think I’m game for another round of Burn, Baby, Burn?
I hesitate at the top of the steps and pull Kera to a stop. “You ran off.”
She pulls her hand out of mine, and a shiver rakes her body. “Yo
u scared me.”
I scared myself.
“Yeah. That was obvious. I didn’t mean to, though.”
“Everything is different,” she says. “The magic that’s in us is not what I expected. It’s different. You playing with that fire… Magic should never be taken lightly. Whatever we do, there are consequences. You need to be careful. We need to be careful.”
She’s the one being careful. I’m being an idiot. I adapted quickly because the magic was always in me. Even borrowing the small bit from her dad couldn’t possibly compare to what she has now, yet she’s thinking ahead.
“You think I drew that thing to us because I got mad and lit up.”
She nods.
“So do I. But you can trust me, Kera. Deep down, I’m the same guy I’ve always been. Yeah, weird stuff is happening, and I’m adjusting as I go, but I will never hurt you.”
She nods, but it doesn’t hold any conviction.
I sigh, knowing I sound ridiculous. I tuck a strand of her long dark hair behind her ear. “From here on out, things will be different. I promise.”
“I believe you, but change is never easy.” Her hand gently glides up my chest until her fingers curl against my cheek. “I should not have taken off like that. I’m sorry.”
The feel of her cool hand on my skin makes me sigh. I kiss her palm and pull her close. She cuddles against me. I stroke her hair. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“I didn’t do anything right,” she whispers and lifts her head. “I know I can trust you. I love you.”
Any willpower I might’ve had is gone. I kiss her, feel my chest tighten, and pull her closer. We’ve been through so much together, everyday problems to life-and-death situations. If I ever lost her, I’d die. Seeing her run away made me sick. Made me afraid. I never want to feel that way again. Whatever Grandpa has planned, I’ll do it. No questions asked. I’m desperate to be normal, to live without scaring Kera or myself or anyone else I care about into running off. I make it sound like it’s going to be easy, but I know it’ll be the hardest thing I’ve ever done.
