Fire: Daughter of Nature, #1

By L.C. Mawson

It only takes one night for the world to turn on its head...

 

Finishing my second degree was supposed to be a quiet time of wrapping up my academic work and maybe making a friend or two before everyone left town. That was before the monsters starting attacking.

 

I've always ignored the strange occurrences that tend to happen around me, but now these creatures are hunting me, and everything I touch is erupting into flame, and all I've got to help is a guy I barely know, his reclusive sister, an invitation to train with a secretive magical faction, and a strange necklace that apparently belongs to the magical world's most wanted...

 

I'm not used to trusting anyone else, but as monsters close in, I don't think I have a choice.

 

If you love kick-ass heroines and magical adventures, you'll love FIRE, the first book in L.C. Mawson's new F/F urban fantasy series, Daughter of Nature.

 

Get it now!

• Language: English
• Publisher: L.C. Mawson
• Release date: Apr 30, 2022
• ISBN: 9798201166373

Book preview

Chapter One

The bartender raised her eyebrow as I approached the bar once again.

"Are you getting all of the drinks tonight?"

I shrugged. Well, I’m not paying for all of them, but I offered to come and get them. I could use the walk.

She smiled and nodded as she pulled out another bottle of wine, a few bottles of lager and a coke, and I waved Sarah’s card at the terminal.

Make someone else get them next time, she said with a smile and I smiled back, though I really didn’t mind. I never knew how to talk in big groups, so I ended up sitting in the corner, not knowing whose conversation I should try to contribute to.

Maybe no one’s. Maybe it was time for me to go home...

Thanks, Sarah said, not even looking at me as I put the drinks down and gave her back her card, too engrossed in her conversation with Henry.

I looked over to the others as I sipped at my coke and saw that Triona and Dan had reached a lull in their conversation, so I figured that trying to spark it up again might not be taken as rude.

So... Anyone else thinking of going to the climate strike march tomorrow?

Dan glanced over to Triona before shrugging. I don’t know, maybe, we hadn’t decided.

Well, if you want to go, we should meet up and go together.

Yeah, maybe... He took a deep drink from his glass and I tried not to suppress a sigh as I looked over to Triona and realised that she wouldn’t meet my gaze.

I’d been through this enough to recognise it now. The polite refusal. There were plenty of things I could put it down to – maybe they didn’t want to go and didn’t want to say in case it was taken as a political statement or maybe they had already planned to go together on a date – but after dozens and dozens of similar let-downs, I was long past recognising that I was the common problem.

Hell, if the invite for this night out hadn’t gone out to the Facebook group for our engineering course, that I was only a part of because of our group project, I wouldn’t have known about it at all.

I stayed until I finished my drink, as Triona and Dan started up their own conversation again, and made no effort to include me.

No one even seemed to notice as I stood up.

Bye everyone! I said, doing my best to go for a cheery voice. Maybe I was reading this wrong. Maybe this was all in my head and I was sulking, which then became the thing making everyone ignore me.

But, despite my best cheery voice, Sarah only vaguely waved a hand in my direction, not even turning around.

No one else seemed to notice as I headed out of the door.

I sighed as I wrapped my oversized yellow shirt tight around me, the thick vest top underneath not quite doing its job of keeping out the chill of the night air.

I looked over my shoulder, sure I could feel someone watching me as I turned onto an empty street.

Something in the shadows moved, but I didn’t stay still to get a good look. Worst case scenario, it was a creepy guy following me from the bar, and he’d back off once I got to the other side of the narrow alley and it opened up onto a row of busy nightclubs.

I kept to the busy streets after that, more than able to keep a straight line filled with smokers standing outside of bars between me and the student part of town.

I might have been a post-grad, but I couldn’t really afford to move out of the rows of ramshackle house shares stuck between campus and the skankier nightlife of the city.

I eventually breathed a sigh of relief as I got home. All of the lights were off, and as it was only ten, that told me that I had the house to myself, not that anyone was asleep.

I kept the light in the hall off, just turning on the light on my phone – I didn’t want to unnecessarily add to the electric bill – and I headed to my room, ready to simply collapse onto the bed and call it a night.

As I entered the room, however, I jumped at the sight of a figure by the window.

I immediately brought up my phone to get a better look – none of my housemates should be snooping around my room, and especially not in the dark – but instead of illuminating a face, all my phone did was reveal a mass of vines, contorted into the vague idea of a head.

The head spun at the light, turning to face me as if it could see me without eyes.

I froze, adrenaline flooding through my veins.

And then it lurched at me.

I raised my arm to cover my face, anticipating an attack, but something ran through my arm, like pins and needles waking up a muscle that had been asleep far too long.

A burst of light and heat caused me to stumble back, the figure in front of me writhing in flames.

I immediately went to grab my blanket, my work fire safety training kicking in.

But as I reached down to the pile of unmade blankets, sheets and duvet on my bed, fire flared where I placed my hand.

I pulled back, fire covering my palm, but not burning me.

What was happening? Was I in shock? Was that saving me from the pain of my hand turning to a crisp?

My throat constricting, forcing a cough, pulled me from my thoughts, reminding me that the room was filling with smoke.

I looked around. The mass of vines on the floor was practically ash, but the desk next to it was now alight, as was my bed.

I needed to get out of there.

I ran out of the house, slamming doors behind me to keep the fire contained.

Thunder crashed overhead as I raced outside, coughing more as the rain came down heavy.

I needed to call 999. I needed to make sure the fire didn’t spread. I needed...

I AWOKE WITH A GROAN, my head pounding.

Hey, easy now. You hit your head, you need to be careful.

I sat bolt upright, ignoring the strange stock-BBC voice as I remembered what had happened.

The fire! Was anyone hurt? Is everyone alright?

The man sitting next to my bed gave me a reassuring smile, his glasses faintly reflecting the glow of the lights above us, drawing attention to how his dark eyes seemed to have an almost purple tinge to them.

It wasn’t until I noticed how bright the lights were that I realised I was in a hospital bed, in an otherwise empty ward. I frowned, I didn’t usually visit hospitals, but I expected them to be busy when I did, not empty like this.

No one was hurt but you, the man continued, refocusing my thoughts. You were the only one in the building, and the rain put the fire out rather quickly.

I frowned. It had been clear when I’d walked home. But then, we were fairly near the coast, so that kind of weather change wasn’t unheard of.

Another man strode over with a frown. He looked almost the opposite of the man sitting next to me – with paper white skin where the other’s was jet black, and a rounder figure while the other was lean, as far as I could see, at least, maybe his leather jacket was hiding muscles I couldn’t see – though both of them had the same very dark eyes.

What did I say about aggravating my patient?

The first man rolled his eyes. She literally just woke up, I was about to come and get you. But it seemed important to assure her that she hadn’t hurt anyone.

That I hadn’t hurt anyone?

But then I remembered the fire over my hands. I looked down, seeing no burns.

Where had that fire come from? Why hadn’t it hurt me?

There was an answer there, hidden in the depths of my mind, but I pushed it away.

No need to risk a visit to the mental hospital.

The second man nodded, leaning close to look me over, and allowing me a look at his name badge.

Viktor Smith, nurse.

The name Viktor rang a bell and as I looked back up at him, it suddenly clicked, despite my faceblindness.

Didn’t we go to uni together?

He smiled. Yeah, Poppy. But for the sake of checking your memory, could you tell me where exactly we met?

I glanced over to the other man before deciding to answer anyway. I had no idea why he was here – had he been the one to find me? – but he was a stranger and if I put much stock in what strangers thought of me, I’d never have any rest. Worrying about what the people who knew me thought took up enough time as it was.

We met at the Autistic Support Group.

He nodded. And then you never showed up to another meeting.

I shrugged. I guess... I guess it felt over facilitated by the staff, you know? And then I got busy with school work...

It’s okay, I only went to a handful myself.

So... I take it you graduated from nursing?

He nodded. I did, indeed. And you? Engineering, wasn’t it?

I went back for post-grad.

He nodded again, finally leaning back. Well, you’re fine. I took care of the concussion and all of the bumps and bruises. You didn’t have any burns, but I suppose that’s to be expected. No, all you have now is a nasty bout of magical exhaustion. Which I’m guessing is what caused you to pass out and hit your head. You’re lucky David was around, I wouldn’t want to think what the Humans might have thought if he hadn’t sensed the flare of magic you ended up sending out and found you.

I just stared at him for several moments before gathering the wherewithal to say, I, um... I have what kind of exhaustion?

Magical. You know, from sparking that much fire all at once. I’m guessing you don’t have much opportunity to practise.

He frowned at me as I kept staring. Is your hearing okay? Do you need me to take a look? He gestured his hands to his ears before David spoke up.

You don’t know, do you?

Know what? My voice sounded like thunder compared to his calm tone and I drew the blanket on my hospital bed tight around me. Sorry, I just...

It’s okay, Poppy. I’m sorry, I didn’t realise that you didn’t know. At your age... Things like this must have happened before. Odd experiences that you couldn’t explain.

I... I guess. Sometimes. But...

He gave me a sympathetic smile. But it’s hard to go from odd flares of fire to magic.

I nodded. I just thought the gas taps at my school were dodgy. And it was never... It was never like this. No one ever got hurt.

And no one got hurt this time, either. I made sure that the University reached out to your housemates with offers of housing, and your room was the only one damaged.

I just nodded again, glad that I hadn’t done any permanent damage. Well, except maybe to my landlord’s property, but fuck that guy, I’d probably done him a favour, given how mould infested that room had been.

What about your parents? David asked. These powers are usually inherited.

I shrugged. I never knew my mother, and my paternal grandparents raised me. I’m fairly certain that if anything like this existed on that side of the family, they would have told me.

If you inherited your powers from your mother, that would explain why you never knew.

I groaned as what we were talking about truly sank in. Magic. He was telling me I had magic.

I turned to Viktor. Are you sure I don’t have a concussion from that fall?

Viktor gave me a sympathetic smile. I’m sure. And I think you’re sure, too. You just don’t want to be because you don’t want to give up on being ‘normal’.

I rolled my eyes. I mean, I’ve never been ‘normal’.

David smiled, lifting his hand so that I could see sparks dancing across it. And neither have we. Don’t worry, Poppy, I know this isn’t easy for you, but you’re not alone.

I tried to smile back, but the simple truth was that I didn’t believe him. Not about magic – there was some part of me, deep inside, that I think had always known and was simply looking for proof that my rational mind would accept – but about the fact that I wasn’t alone. I’d always been alone, and I was sure that I would be alone again. Once they established that the emergency had passed, David and Viktor would disappear just as surely as anyone else who had ever tried to help me when things got bad.

Do you have somewhere to stay? David asked, confirming that he was only here until the crisis had passed.

I can get a hotel, I figured. It wasn’t going to be cheap, but even my dad couldn’t be heartless enough to not send me money when my house burned down.

My stomach twisted as I realised just how unsure of that I was, but I pushed it aside. I still had my 0% student overdraft. I would need to make sure to pay it off in a few months when graduation rolled around, but that gave me time, at least.

You don’t need to do that, Viktor said. Ever since Liv and Riley moved out, we’ve had a spare room at our place. You can stay with us.

I... I don’t want to impose...

Poppy, I’m not taking no for an answer. Especially if you’ve been suppressing your magic long enough to now be setting fire to things randomly. My sister and I both have magic, and we’re the only ones in the house. If you lose control again, you can’t hurt us.

I was about to argue that the fire hadn’t been random, when David stood up.

You shouldn’t stay long in the city, anyway. Are you done with your course for the year?

I nodded, my intended argument slipping my mind completely. "I’m just waiting on