The Purifying Fire: A Planeswalker Novel by Laura Resnick

everyone did these days. But it made her uneasy, even so.
    She asked, “Who are you?”
    “My name is Gideon.”
    “And what’s that to me?”
    “I think we should get you out of here.”
    “What?” she said.
    He glanced around. Just a slight turn of his chin, a quick flicker of his eyes to encompass the street scene and the gargoyle guardians overhead. “This situation is volatile. We should leave.”
    “Who are you?”
    “We have very little time.”
    “Then answer my question quickly,” she snapped.
    “What happened back there,” he said quietly, tilting his head to indicate the disaster at the Sanctum of Stars. “That was you.”
    She didn’t respond.
    He prodded, “Wasn’t it?” When she remained unresponsive, he said, “Of course it was. Who else
could
have done it?”
    “You’d better back up and tell me how you even know who I am.” She was starting to think he wasn’t working for the Prelate, or the ruined Sanctum.
    “You’ve been making yourself conspicuous,” he said.
    “Maybe so. But
you
haven’t. So I suggest you start explaining.”
    “What was it?” He lowered his voice so they wouldn’t be overheard, but some emotion showed now. Tension? Disdain? She wasn’t sure. “A explosion of that size? Inside the Sanctum?” She didn’t deny it, and he whispered, “What were you
thinking?”
    She admitted wearily, “I was just thinking about surviving.”
    His gaze dropped to the scroll clutched in her hand. “And also about stealing?”
    “All right, fine, so I’m a bad person,” she said. “I had a troubled youth.”
    “You’re
still
having a troubled youth.”
    “All the more reason to stay away from me, Gideon.” She turned to go.
    His grip on her arm stopped her. “Hunting you down has been troublesome. I don’t intend to go through it twice.”
    She stared at him. “Why have you been hunting me down?”
    He looked past her and, though he didn’t move, she sensed his tension increase sharply. “Never mind that now. I think we both know why
they’re
hunting you down.”
    She turned to follow his gaze and saw half a dozen soldiers heading this way. She turned to escape in the other direction, only to see soldiers approaching from there, too.
    “Are you their scout?” she demanded.
    “No,
I
was hoping to avoid this.” He looked up at the gruesome sky patrol. “And I think you may have been spotted from above, as well.”
    “Now what?”
    “They’re going to take you into custody.” He added, “I hope you have a high threshold for pain.”
    Adrenaline surged through her, and she felt herself getting her second wind. “I think I can fight.”
    “No!”
    “Will you help?”
    “No”
    “Then get out of the way!”
    Chandra felt stronger. She was thinking about survival again, and fear had a wonderfully energizing effect.
    As the soldiers approached her from both sides in the crowded street, she felt heat start to flow through her,welcome and inspiring. She felt the fire moving through her blood once more.
    Gideon moved swiftly. He grabbed the thing hanging from his belt—that coil of metal. It unfurled in his hand, glowing so brightly that Chandra was distracted. He swung his arm, and then the thing was twining around her.
    “No!” she said, shocked and caught off guard. “Stop!”
    It had broad, flexible blades and sharp edges, and it was cold … so
cold
. It tightened around her, constricting her, stifling her breath. And its terrible cold trapped her fire, contained her heat, smothered her rage … As she struggled for air and shivered with cold, the weapon robbed her of consciousness.
    But just before everything went black, she thought she heard him say, “I’m sorry.”

W hen Chandra opened her eyes, she found herself staring into the beady eyes of a black snake. Its tongue flicked out at her. She flinched and tried to move back, but couldn’t. Her back was flat against a wall, her limbs uncomfortably chained in a spread-eagle position. Bound