Stellar

Interesting theory about Theo there. Maybe there's a sliver of truth to that, perhaps? How much is acting and how much isn't? What exactly did Darren do when he touched that sapphire? And yes -- the dragon is most definitely out of the shed. That could become a new metaphor, couldn't it? Like 'the cat's out of the bag' only on a bigger scale ... and with fire.

Just what is 'a snake' though? Who is Darren? How are these individuals all connected?

That dragon! What is he up to? And ... Theo. The boy clearly has some things on his mind

Darren is really good at compulsion. It doesn't take much to switch things around. And Theo ... poor poor Theo. He's a bit confused, or so it seems. Thanks for reading!

It is delivered! Chapter 5 of Spirit of Fire.

It was busy for a weekday morning. The main commercial district of Mirrorvale was very pedestrian-friendly and the two adjoining streets south of the central mall complex were filled with a flea market's worth of street stalls, each offering a bouquet of shopping possibility. Everything from food to 'authentic' Persian rugs was on offer, arrayed alongside the cleaner colours and lines of professional advertising, the chain stores and franchised labels of the American corporate. Yet, Nero ha

At the back of the empty classroom, Lucy took a seat, dumping her bag on the floor and folding her arms. School had ended and she was the only one present. There was a hope that she would get away without punishment, but, ultimately, it wasn't a surprise when her fifth period teacher had informed her that she was on afternoon detention. She didn't need a second guess as to why. Darren. It seemed unfair that the consequence for talking back to a manipulative asshole was to have her time

Hey Michael, thanks for commenting! I'm glad you're enjoying Spirit of Fire! You'll start getting *some* answers in the next few chapters, but the bigger ones will take longer to emerge, as is usual. Rest assured, it will be exciting --- well, at least I hope so. Thanks for reading!

Thank you! Mrs Sterling has certainly gained the notice of a few readers. Seems there are a lot of people close to Torsten's daily life who know something about all the goings-on! Hmmmmmmmmm.

Mrs Figg, huh? Curious comparison to make -- very interesting! Lucy's resistance to mental compulsion is natural; she has an inbuilt ability and also is simply strong-willed. Not every hard-headed stubborn individual would be able to do what she has done through just plain old strength of mind though, and it would also depend on who is attempting to compel them. Some are just garden-variety persuasive, whilst some are scarily irresistible.

Many other characters have never been in the same scene together also. Do they also make your senses tingle? Just how paranoid is paranoid enough?

Aww, thanks! There'll be more as soon as I can produce it, don't you worry!

Yes, just who is Mrs Sterling? She's handy with a pair of shears, that much is certain. What, you aren't sure about Theo? What makes you doubt? Thanks for reading!

Chapter 4 of Spirit of Fire.

Happy Birthday, Cia.

Yep, certainly is a danger to leave a pyromaniac around a pile of kindling, but Torsten is low on options about what to do with it. As for 'just how big is this thing gonna get?' -- to this I can say: even as an adolescent, it will be large. As a fully grown adult, very large. It is 100% not something that can be hidden in suburbia, but, well ... this won't end up being a problem. At least, not in the way you might be expecting.

You could maybe consider it cute when it was a newborn, but that's a pretty heavy maybe as it will get considerably less so the larger it grows. As mentioned above in the end notes to this chapter and in the text itself by Torsten, the dragon has some resemblance (in face only, not in full bodily form) to Alduin from the Elder Scrolls: Skyrim game. To give you an idea, check out this image and this one also. The primary differences are the one in Spirit of Fire is red, not black, and it's currently only a fraction of Alduin's size, so the proportions of the face would be scaled down to reflect its youth and immaturity. Also, the dragons from Skyrim, and even the ones from the Game of Thrones TV series and Smaug from The Hobbit; all of these have only four limbs -- two back legs and wings that double as front limbs. This, in the technical parlance of fantasy, actually makes them wyverns and not dragons, and is something that always made the geeky side of my brain rather annoyed. A true dragon should have four legs AND two wings -- six limbs in total -- and this is exactly how Torsten's new charge is portrayed.

Seems a few people only got notified when the third chapter appeared. Not quite sure what the reason for that is!

Yes, indeed -- who is good and bad? You can certainly make some educated guesses That shed has a lot of flammable items in it though. It burning down is a very real possibility. Yikes.

Thank you! What Theo said isn't as important as the way she was being influenced by his suggestion. I'm not going to tell you the exact words but you can surmise that it was to the effect of: go back where you came from and forget about everyone sitting at this table. Along these lines, Darren is a bit surprised because it is quite rare for him to meet anyone capable of resisting his compulsion, but ... this is Lucy. Her mental fortitude is right up there with her irreverent attitude. The car Agent Crawley owns is a black Cadillac. The 61 is not in reference to the year, but the series it comes from, which was produced during the time of the Second World War. His would have to be a restored and refurbished model, and it is in fitting with his love of nostalgia and throwbacks to American culture from the era of film noir.

Thank you! I'm sure there will be a few disappointed people wanting to know what happens to Earth on the brink of invasion, but that cliff is one that those folks will simply have to hang off for a while longer. There will be no third book until after Spirit of Fire is finished.

It isn't a spoiler to say that what Nero was doing in the second chapter is slightly different than what's been observed in the third. You are correct in the belief that physical contact is required for Nero to make somebody sleep. This is not the case for Darren's attempted compulsion of Lucy, and it is indeed due to the nature of the magic being employed. Both are innate talents, but one is 'common' for these folk and the other is much more personalised. You can expect chapters at a somewhat steady rate compared with my other work. See the Spirit of Fire thread for more detail on this.

Lucy is definitely a fan of the scifi genre and also of yaoi, so a 'Secret Moonlight' movie would be her thing. Of course what really counts in such ventures is getting the details accurate -- the science itself, the action set pieces and most notably: the exact squishiness and squeezeability of Shay's ass. This is of supreme importance and cannot be misrepresented. In terms of writing, the style will be much the same that you're used to. The subject matter, however, will be a bit of a departure -- fantasy has fewer barriers than scifi, so I have infinite possibility to work with. I know where I am headed with this one, however, so I hope you'll enjoy the ride.

More Spirit of Fire is available. Read Chapter 3 here.

The phone was ringing. It wouldn't stop. Tone after tone after tone, it kept on. Again. Again. AGAIN. Incessant. In a stupor, irritable, tired, cranky, half-baked and half-awake; he reached out a hand and plucked the receiver from the cradle. There was a pause, pregnant with expectation and the officiality of those who want an answer, and finally, he spoke. "What," he growled, "do you fuckin' want?" "Mr Crawley." The voice on the other end was bureauc