Page 9 of Kill the Queens

“Well, it was light. You were, uh, how do I put this?” She rubbed a hand at the back of her head. “Glowing. On fire. Flames...there were flames going up your arms.”

He stared down at his hands. “You can make an orange glowing sword and I have...fire palms?”

Ace had almost forgotten about that sword. Her orange eyes flicked down to her own hands. Could she even do that again? She thought about what those moments had felt like. She focused on the memory of the weight of the weapon in her hands.

Nothing.

Her hands didn’t heat or fill with a hilt. She didn’t suddenly become well aware of how to swing a sword. Nothing fucking happened.

“The room did get bright though. Try it again.” Ace urged. She was already squinting, preparing herself for whatever he would be trying next. “Give me shoes or something.”

He nodded, but his brows pinched together and he grimaced. Shelby wiped his hands against the rags of his shirt and held his arms back at his sides. He moved his lips ever so slightly and Ace swore he was saying ‘focus’ repeatedly. After a couple of seconds, flames burst out across his palms once more.

The room lit up with the fire and warmed just as it had last time. Ace’s heels could feel the heat too. There was no breeze to cool the flames within the small room. Sweat began to bead along her temple.

Holy fire,Greshta said.

Ace glared up at the gods. Obviously this was holy fire, they didn’t need to tell her that much. Magic tingled against the arches of her feet working its way over her toes and toward her ankles. That was a good sign.

He is powerful. But not in the same way as you,Sylik confirmed.

“That’s great but can you tell us if he has his magic still? Or say something useful?” she hissed toward the heavens. She didn’t have the patience for them to dance around the subject today.

“What?” Shelby said, the flames sputtering out. The warmth surrounding her feet disappeared, leaving her wiggling her toes against the cold floor.

“You have holy fire in you.” She sighed. “The gods were just reiterating that even though it’s very obvious. Please keep trying, I think I almost felt something. I didn’t mean to ruin your concentration.”

“Maybe my magic’s gone. Maybe the holy fire burned it all away.” He started pacing again. His fists opened and closed at his sides.

“We won’t know unless you try. Just concentrate. I promise I’ll be quiet. I can ignore the gods.”

She’s going to ignore us?Greshta scoffed.This ought to be good.

We can be quite hard to ignore,Sylik said.

The warlock isn’t going to be worth much if he can’t do magic without the room being utterly silent,Greshta continued.

Ace kept her mouth closed, letting the gods ramble without response. Shelby cupped his hands together this time, staring down at his fingertips. His power rippled out into small flames that danced along his skin. His eyes widened and the orange in his gaze glowed in response. The fire grew down his fingers and settled in his palms.

You better stay quiet or he will lose his concentration again. I would hate for us to rile you up somehow,Greshta began to tease.

Normally I would tell you to stop but I am quite entertained by this. The girl knew what she was doing was wrong and she did it anyway,Sylik said.Maybe she isn’t toounlike the queens in that way.

Ace’s breath caught in her throat. She forced herself to stay quiet but Sylik had found the raw wound and jabbed at it. She’d unbalanced nature like the queens. She’d broken the gods’ commandment.

The warmth was settling on Ace’s feet again. She held still looking down toward the ground. His magic danced across her thin socks, her feet growing hotter as the fire he held ate its way up his arms.

Shelby inhaled sharply and held his arms at his sides as the flames ran higher and brighter, nearing but not touching his cuffed sleeves. Their light was cast against the walls.

Ace’s feet grew heavier and between one blink and the next new shiny boots had appeared. She let out a long sigh of relief. Meeting Shelby’s stare, she could see it in his eyes too. The flames died out. He stared down at his hands.

“How do they feel?” he asked weakly.

“Like boots.” Ace held her foot up to show it off. “So you still have magic.”

Even if the boy isn’t very good at it. You’d think with the blood that runs through his veins he’d be more powerful but nope. That’s it,Greshta muttered. She must be in a sour mood.

“That’s good. Even if it’s different.” He rubbed a knuckle along his jaw. “Oh my gods.” Worry flooded his tone. “We need to tell my grandma. We should have gone right to her.” He was really pulling at his face now, hands rubbing over his features like he was trying to rip himself from his own skin.

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