Burning Stone by Viola Grace Read Free Book Online

once he was on the ground, his long strides carried him to her. “I did not think that you would get this far this fast.”
    “It was a simple structure to the stone. Once I had a grip on it, it just melted away.”
    “Do you wish to wait for the skimmer?”
    She shook her head. “Can you carry me and fly?”
    He grinned. “My people would not have become mythical for stealing maidens if I could not.”
    He carefully lifted her in his arms and his wings flared wide. He bent his knees and pushed upward. His wings thrummed powerfully, and they climbed into the sky.
     
    Squealing would have been undignified, but she was held so securely that she was able to wave at the skimmer full of Kremlod as they examined the tunnel.
    Bohr’s hands were tight but polite. He gripped her only where she was covered by fabric.
    He flew them back along the straight line that she had burned in the stone. The sun tinged a darker shade as it prepared to drop, and it made her sigh with satisfaction.
    He landed at the shuttle and carried her inside once again.
    “I believe we have much to discuss, but I need to make a call to the Kremlod and ask them to confirm the usability of the tunnel. Once that is done, we can leave and begin our trip to the next world.”
    She nodded. “Right. I am going to try that language flash again. Maybe if I am tired, it will stick better.”
    He went his way to the command deck, and she grabbed the data pad, setting up the flash.
    When it went off, she gripped the pad instead of dropping it like she did the first time. The information in her mind still spun, so she waited until it ceased before putting the data pad down and heading for a nice solar shower. She didn’t really sweat, but ash did collect on her skin. Time to get clean.
     

Chapter Seven
     
     
    Since her workday was done, she slipped on a floor-length tunic that tied at the waist with a sash. The dark green made her hair look even redder, but it wasn’t a bad thing.
    She brushed her hair and went to meet Bohr on the command deck, her feet bare on the plates. Leyhara sat in her seat and pulled her feet up, wrapping her arms around them while staring out at the growing darkness.
    He was finishing the conversation, and to her surprise, he was rejecting an invitation to dinner. He accepted effusive thanks and was told that the bill had been paid to Citadel Iskan as agreed. He thanked them for their prompt attention to the bill and that was the end of the hissing and gargling.
    He sealed the ship, verified the readouts and lifted off.
    “Next assignment is easy; it is a meditative pathway on Ciina. You will have to follow a laid-out path, but they want it in a smooth and even surface and you can create it in one solid piece.”
    “A meditative pathway?”
    Bohr nodded and glanced at her as he pulled them out of the atmosphere and into the eternal night of space.
    “You changed.”
    “I did. I figured I was done for the day and this was made for me for days I wasn’t going to use my skills. It is comfortable.” She felt it necessary to defend her clothing.
    “It looks lovely. I was just surprised.”
    “That clothing wasn’t dictated by me; it was Mockski’s talent that drove the shape. No matter what he tried, his hands came up with the same pattern over and over again.”
    “His hands?”
    “Yes, he morphs clothing using his hands. For the first sample, he has to make full contact with the substance.”
    Bohr tightened his hands and flattened them with care. “I see. I think I may seek out another tailor for you if you have no objection. There is another sleeper at Morganti and I believe that there is a shaper there as well.”
    She made a face. “I am fine with Mockski. If you have difficulty, then you will have to grapple with it.”
    He tilted his head. “I am rather old fashioned when it comes to someone touching my mate.”
    “I am not yet your mate, and therefore, you can have no objection. My association with Mockski was