Page 457 of Axis of Fire

"I don't understand."

My voice still trembled.

"It seems..." His voice remained painfully calm. "I was only interested in your body."

I couldn't say a word.

I honestly had no idea what I was supposed to say.

Airis lowered his gaze, turning his head slightly as though listening to something beyond the pavilion.

As though the outside world still existed.

Mine had vanished.

I felt my power gathering in my palms, racing through my veins at the speed of light.

I couldn't even think about stopping it.

It was faster than I was.

Flames burst from my hands, rushing to shield me behind a wall of fire.

But another force—

air—

stole that chance from them.

"I hate you." The words tore from my lips. "I hate you."

As if proving them true, my fire erupted with even greater force.

This time, Airis wasn't fast enough to stop it.

The flames spread through the flowers, consuming them so quickly it was as though they'd been dead all along.

Within seconds, every blossom collapsed, burning away until nothing remained but the pavilion's stark white frame.

The walls disappeared.

And suddenly...

the entire world could see us.

Airis frowned.

With a simple snap of his fingers, the fire died.

Unfortunately, that was all it took.

"Excellent work, Fireling." His voice was calm, almost detached. "Now I'm certain you'll make it through the Selection without putting yourself at risk."

Chapter 43

I wasn't crying.

Every breath simply scraped against my ribs, as though his words were still lodged inside my chest.