The Hour of Dust and Ashes by Kelly Gay Page A

and settling into relaxed yet watchful guard dog mode. It was like having a gray, bald tiger in the corner, only this one had the jaws of an oversized pit bull and eyes that reflected red in the light.
    And for some odd reason, I was starting to think the thing was cute.
    I chuckled at that thought, lifted the down comforter, and slid into my cool bed.
    I am on the rooftop of Helios Tower watching a sporadic replay of last week’s events. Dawn of the winter solstice. Llyran parts the darkness churning above and then uses its power to slide the lid off the agate sarcophagus.
    The agate no longer masks the power inside. An enormous surge radiates over the tower, a pulse of energy so heavy and thick that it steals my breath, a surge that flows through every fiber of my being, so deep and powerful and stunning.
    There is fighting all around me. It comes in broken flashes.
    Brimstone attacks Llyran.
    My chest tightens painfully. I know what comes next. Tears sting my eyes as Llyran kills my daughter’s beloved hellhound.
    Then I am crawling toward the sarcophagus, pulling myself up, and grabbing the only weapon I can find. I hold the sword aloft, over Llyran’s head. The hilt sears my hand, but I don’t care. It doesn’t matter. Tears slip hot and fat from my eyes as I bring down the weapon with every bit of strength I have left.
    And then suddenly, they are gone and I am standing alone beside the agate tomb, gazing down in wonder at what it contains. Llyran is dead. My hand is useless, but I am transfixed as I stare at one of the most beautiful creatures I’ve ever seen. A divine being. A First One. Ahkneri. The Creator’s Chosen One. His Star, and then, later, His instrument of Vengeance, Retribution, and Punishment. The sword is back in her grip as though I never touched it, held between her breasts. It is a named weapon, a divine weapon called Urzenamelech, “Anguish by fire.”
    And now I understand why because my hand and even my arm burn from the inside out.
    The scene shifts in a blur.
    Gray landscape. Valleys. Mountains. Cloud-laden sky. Mist-covered ground. All moving by at great speed. Down over foothills covered in grass to flatlands that eventually turn to sand. To a desert and a sparkling river under a blazing white sun. To the walls of a massive temple rearing up on the other side.
    Straight up the face of the wall and over the balcony. Between massive columns, so high their tops are lost in shadows. To a courtyard.
    “No!” A voice pleads. Feminine. Familiar. And I know immediately who this is. Ahkneri. She speaks in an ancient language that somehow I understand.
    Then another voice. “Our purpose is at an end. Our lives here, in this state, are over. It was always meant to be like this. You know this.”
    Another denial. Anger. Shouting.
    And then the scene is speeding away again back through
the columns and out over the land to a dark place, a place of mist and jagged mountains that scrape the sky.
    Then inside a tunnel of light so blinding.
    Darkness. Inside of the mountains. Into blackness. Earth.
    An eye blinks open.
    My eyes flew open. A cold, heart-pounding sweat covered me. Foreboding tensed every muscle and dried out my mouth. That dream, or whatever the hell I’d just experienced, struck me with bleak fear.
    Brim’s sudden whine made goose bumps spread over my skin.
    My sight quickly adjusted to the dark room, and I stayed beneath the covers, moving only my head so I could see the shadow of the hellhound—still lying down, but his head was up, short ears pointed.
    His soft panting was the only sound in the room. But still I hesitated to move. I could detect auras, sense presences, and those senses were telling me there was nothing else here. Nothing. Yet it didn’t feel right; something wasn’t right.
    Slowly, I turned my head to the other side. The street lamp from outside faintly illuminated my dark curtains. There was nothing in the bedroom. I drew in a deep breath and let it out. It had