but I absorbed the fluid without any problem.
“Someone tell me what the hell just happened.” My words garbled over each other, my tongue still too swollen for articulation.
“Geez, one would think a little sun-baking would lessen your bossy-ass nature.” Lucy sounded closer.
My eyelids were back again . I fluttered them a few times, testing for pain, before slowly opening them. The light was dim enough that there was no disorientation.
“Sun-baking ? I think maybe you mean oven-baking.” I was relieved to see my friends’ worried faces as they peered over me.
I noticed everyone had the thick glasses pushed up to rest on top of their heads. I could feel the brief weight of my own on my curls.
“Word.” She nodded.
“You really should be more careful, Abby.” I flicked my eyes across to Lucas . He was slouched against a rock wall. “You saved us, but it could have cost you your life.”
I didn’t answer straight away, as I was struggling to sit up. Lucy’s arms flapped as she attempted to find a non-painful spot to jam her hands and help me. Finally she slipped them under my armpits, which must have avoided the worst of the burns, because there was no pain. Once I was sitting, I breathed in the thick air a few times, letting my body adjust to the new discomforts. After a few moments I glared at Lucas.
“Don’t tell me what to do, Lucas . I’ll risk my life in whatever way I feel fit at the time. You don’t get any say in the matter.” I looked at my white suit, which was tattered, with burn holes scattered along its shiny surface.
I owed my father thanks for this outfit . It seemed to have protected me from an all-over scorching.
Lucas straightened then, his normally jovial features hardening.
“ You might not care how I feel, but you have a responsibility to every person on the seven worlds, Abigail. So maybe you do need to think of others before making stupid-ass decisions.”
I gave him one last look before turning my head away, determined to ignore him. Although his damn words kept running through my mind. Sometimes I forgot this massive mantle of responsibility that had been dropped in my lap. But forgetting wouldn’t change the truth.
“Tell me what happened?” I looked from Lucy to Talina. “Where are we?”
“Still on Crais, under the ground where the people live.” Talina shifted uncomfortably.
S he looked less pink, more pale than usual, and her emerald hair was dull, hanging in lifeless strands down her back.
“Are you okay, Talli?” I hadn’t seen her looking this frazzled since the day Raror had died.
She nodded, her gesture conveying immense exhaustion. “Yeah, it’s just the lack of moisture in the air here; it won’t kill me, but it’s very uncomfortable.” She looked around. “The man has gone for more of the water. I’ll feel much better after a splash or two.”
“He saved us ,” Lucy piped up. “Well, you and he both saved us. You dropped the shield to shoot energy at the dragon thing. But you only dropped it from yourself. Lucky we were in the shade or you’d have been instantly incinerated.”
I must have acted on instinct because I was sure that my intention hadn’t been to drop the shield at all.
“Was it the man that we chased to the cliffs?”
Lucy nodded. “Yep, he must have been watching us, and when you hit the ground he jumped back out and dragged us all inside this weird folding rock.”
Talina added in her quiet tones , “We’d have never found the entrance on our own. They have them cleverly disguised.”
“What happened to the dragon?” I doubt ed my little burst of energy had killed it.
“You must have shocked it with your blue electrical charge. It flew off and was circling up high when we were dragged to safety,” Talina said.
I took a moment to observe my surroundings. We were definitely underground; and although it was much cooler than the surface it was still quite stifling. There was very dim lighting, and it
“Someone tell me what the hell just happened.” My words garbled over each other, my tongue still too swollen for articulation.
“Geez, one would think a little sun-baking would lessen your bossy-ass nature.” Lucy sounded closer.
My eyelids were back again . I fluttered them a few times, testing for pain, before slowly opening them. The light was dim enough that there was no disorientation.
“Sun-baking ? I think maybe you mean oven-baking.” I was relieved to see my friends’ worried faces as they peered over me.
I noticed everyone had the thick glasses pushed up to rest on top of their heads. I could feel the brief weight of my own on my curls.
“Word.” She nodded.
“You really should be more careful, Abby.” I flicked my eyes across to Lucas . He was slouched against a rock wall. “You saved us, but it could have cost you your life.”
I didn’t answer straight away, as I was struggling to sit up. Lucy’s arms flapped as she attempted to find a non-painful spot to jam her hands and help me. Finally she slipped them under my armpits, which must have avoided the worst of the burns, because there was no pain. Once I was sitting, I breathed in the thick air a few times, letting my body adjust to the new discomforts. After a few moments I glared at Lucas.
“Don’t tell me what to do, Lucas . I’ll risk my life in whatever way I feel fit at the time. You don’t get any say in the matter.” I looked at my white suit, which was tattered, with burn holes scattered along its shiny surface.
I owed my father thanks for this outfit . It seemed to have protected me from an all-over scorching.
Lucas straightened then, his normally jovial features hardening.
“ You might not care how I feel, but you have a responsibility to every person on the seven worlds, Abigail. So maybe you do need to think of others before making stupid-ass decisions.”
I gave him one last look before turning my head away, determined to ignore him. Although his damn words kept running through my mind. Sometimes I forgot this massive mantle of responsibility that had been dropped in my lap. But forgetting wouldn’t change the truth.
“Tell me what happened?” I looked from Lucy to Talina. “Where are we?”
“Still on Crais, under the ground where the people live.” Talina shifted uncomfortably.
S he looked less pink, more pale than usual, and her emerald hair was dull, hanging in lifeless strands down her back.
“Are you okay, Talli?” I hadn’t seen her looking this frazzled since the day Raror had died.
She nodded, her gesture conveying immense exhaustion. “Yeah, it’s just the lack of moisture in the air here; it won’t kill me, but it’s very uncomfortable.” She looked around. “The man has gone for more of the water. I’ll feel much better after a splash or two.”
“He saved us ,” Lucy piped up. “Well, you and he both saved us. You dropped the shield to shoot energy at the dragon thing. But you only dropped it from yourself. Lucky we were in the shade or you’d have been instantly incinerated.”
I must have acted on instinct because I was sure that my intention hadn’t been to drop the shield at all.
“Was it the man that we chased to the cliffs?”
Lucy nodded. “Yep, he must have been watching us, and when you hit the ground he jumped back out and dragged us all inside this weird folding rock.”
Talina added in her quiet tones , “We’d have never found the entrance on our own. They have them cleverly disguised.”
“What happened to the dragon?” I doubt ed my little burst of energy had killed it.
“You must have shocked it with your blue electrical charge. It flew off and was circling up high when we were dragged to safety,” Talina said.
I took a moment to observe my surroundings. We were definitely underground; and although it was much cooler than the surface it was still quite stifling. There was very dim lighting, and it
Similar Books
