Page 50 of The Fifth Heir

The Fire rune blazed.

Heat struck hard enough to take my breath. I remained inside the circle as long as I could, waiting for the torc to respond again.

Nothing happened.

No colored light.

No dragon magic.

No sudden discovery that the first twenty-four years of my life had been an error.

Only heat.

“Stop,” Malcolm ordered.

The examiner lowered both hands.

The rune continued burning.

She tried again.

Red light surged across the floor, spreading beyond the carved Fire mark and filling the channels surrounding the central disc.

“The control isn’t releasing,” she said.

Torren stepped toward the circle. “Move away from it.”

I tried.

The fire rose before I reached the edge.

A wall of flame surrounded the disc, high enough to block my view of the others. The heat became painful against my face and hands.

I backed toward the center.

“Extinguish it,” Malcolm ordered.

“We’re trying.”

The examiner nearest the Fire rune pressed both palms to the control stone. Another official joined her.

The flame bent toward them.

“Get back,” Torren shouted.

The officials did not move quickly enough.

Fire left the circle in a concentrated arc.

It crossed directly toward the two examiners.

Torren thrust out one hand. His power struck the escaping flame from the side, but the assessment rune had already fed it beyond the level used for resonance testing. The fire twisted under his control without stopping.

One official fell backward.

The other remained pinned against the control stone.

I saw the moment the flame would reach her.