Title: RUNNING FROM DEMONS
Author: M.K. Theodoratus
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 279
Genre: Paranormal/Fantasy
Author: M.K. Theodoratus
Publisher: Independent
Pages: 279
Genre: Paranormal/Fantasy
Pillar Beccon travels across Andor to discover her mother’s
mysterious past. But danger is never far away as a demon seeks to
destroy her.
An orphaned null without a hint of magic, Pillar can’t remember ever
belonging anywhere, especially not in the Freemage commune where she
grew up. After she graduates from high school, she jumps at the chance
to learn why her mother ran away from her family.
During an accidental encounter, Grylerrque, a surviving commander
from The Demon Wars, recognizes what Pillar is and decides to feed the
girl’s life force to her clutch. The demon sends her minions to capture
the girl. Pillar escapes with a help of an unexpected allay, only to
learn she was pulled out of the frying pan and thrown into the fire.
Purchase on Amazon
Purchase on B&N
mysterious past. But danger is never far away as a demon seeks to
destroy her.
An orphaned null without a hint of magic, Pillar can’t remember ever
belonging anywhere, especially not in the Freemage commune where she
grew up. After she graduates from high school, she jumps at the chance
to learn why her mother ran away from her family.
During an accidental encounter, Grylerrque, a surviving commander
from The Demon Wars, recognizes what Pillar is and decides to feed the
girl’s life force to her clutch. The demon sends her minions to capture
the girl. Pillar escapes with a help of an unexpected allay, only to
learn she was pulled out of the frying pan and thrown into the fire.
Purchase on Amazon
Purchase on B&N
Pillar Beccon stood before the open doors of the Taddledon bus
station, steeling her nerves. She was alone with no one
at her back,
not even her running buds from school. Though, now that
"Te Tres
Amigas" had graduated, she'd have to get used to
being alone again.
Pillar's jaw clenched as she braced herself against the
coming stares.
The teen didn’t mind the double takes as she walked
along a
street. They seldom pierced the walls she’d built
around herself. Inside the Taddledon Station, she’d be the pale-skinned,
weird-eared
weirdo caught in a sea of tan people sneaking glances
at her angular,
mismatched face, wispy blond hair, and super tall
height. People always gawked at her. She felt lucky when they didn’t drool when
their
mouths hung open. Pillar begged the Powers for
strength, not that
they ever helped nulls or mages.
Get a grip. At least they won’t tease you like the kids
at school. They
don't know you're a nothing null. Pillar refused to admit she was neither human nor mage, fsh
nor fowl.Besides, odds are the people
waiting're only human and aren't aware.
The hair on the back of her neck prickled. When she
scanned
the station, nothing around her felt threatening. You're over-reacting.
You're safe. Pillar
sighed with relief. I didn’t let Delia down. I
made the
test trip on my own. No glitches.
The teen had survived the day trip to the Taddledon
museum
and gardens in spite of her foster mother's worries.
Pillar didn't need
babysitting by the Freemage commune that had taken her
in when
her mother died. Not that her mother was a born member.
Mages
thought the mountain communes the only safe place for
their young
since their teens made the perfect prey for
demon-kind—if her yapping trainers weren't just blowing hot air. She stood
taller, and her
shoulders relaxed.
Satisfaction flooded through her. I made it.
The bumblebee drone of the milling travelers
bounced off
the
high ceilings andstation, steeling her nerves. She was alone with no one
at her back,
not even her running buds from school. Though, now that
"Te Tres
Amigas" had graduated, she'd have to get used to
being alone again.
Pillar's jaw clenched as she braced herself against the
coming stares.
The teen didn’t mind the double takes as she walked
along a
street. They seldom pierced the walls she’d built
around herself. Inside the Taddledon Station, she’d be the pale-skinned,
weird-eared
weirdo caught in a sea of tan people sneaking glances
at her angular,
mismatched face, wispy blond hair, and super tall
height. People always gawked at her. She felt lucky when they didn’t drool when
their
mouths hung open. Pillar begged the Powers for
strength, not that
they ever helped nulls or mages.
Get a grip. At least they won’t tease you like the kids
at school. They
don't know you're a nothing null. Pillar refused to admit she was neither human nor mage, fsh
nor fowl.Besides, odds are the people
waiting're only human and aren't aware.
The hair on the back of her neck prickled. When she
scanned
the station, nothing around her felt threatening. You're over-reacting.
You're safe. Pillar
sighed with relief. I didn’t let Delia down. I
made the
test trip on my own. No glitches.
The teen had survived the day trip to the Taddledon
museum
and gardens in spite of her foster mother's worries.
Pillar didn't need
babysitting by the Freemage commune that had taken her
in when
her mother died. Not that her mother was a born member.
Mages
thought the mountain communes the only safe place for
their young
since their teens made the perfect prey for
demon-kind—if her yapping trainers weren't just blowing hot air. She stood
taller, and her
shoulders relaxed.
Satisfaction flooded through her. I made it.
The bumblebee drone of the milling travelers
bounced off
the
washed over her. Here and there, children’s shrieks
drew scowls as they
spiked above the noise. All seemed to ignore
the announcement that
a bus had just arrived at the platforms. The
prickles grew
sharper, and she paused.
After a glance around
the lobby, Pillar guessed most were locals
returning to their
surrounding small towns after shopping trips to
the big city. Te few
roamers, marked by their grubby clothes and
backpacks, might be
mages or might not be. Communes and towns
tended to throw out
their misfits after they graduated from high
school if they didn't
get admitted to colleges or tech schools.
A man near the
outside door sat, slumped back on a bench and
eyes closed, with his
hands resting on his ample belly. He opened one
eye and jerked. His
gaze darted away from Pillar’s icy, challenging
stare, made all the
colder by her pale blue eyes. A flush rushed over
his face as he ducked
his head.
It’s not like I’m a
total freak. All mages have long faces.
Pillar hunched her
shoulders again but decided not to get pissed
off or feel sorry for herself. Both reactions were a
waste of energy. Pillar ignored thousands of memories of being told nobody
wanted a
null, not even the
Kingscourt, unless the null was brilliant enough
to become a useful
functionary. Nulls were kicked out of mage communes to fend for themselves in
the slums of the cities.
RUNNING FROM DEMONS 3
Swallowing, Pillar
reached out with her new, weak awareness to
a static-like buzz
along her skin created by the people around her. For
her, the fluttering
ambience of the station tickled rather than buzzed.
She shook her head
and strode towards the end of the station's diner.
Her stomach growled
its approval.
Thoughts of a toasted
cheese sandwich made her mouth water.
Her always hungry stomach
spurred her forward, but a jarring undercurrent sprang out from under the
normal human buzz. The atmosphere of the station suddenly smelled off, like curdled milk.
Pausing again to size
up the waiting travelers, Pillar chewed on
her lip. Everyone
felt normally human to her. No one displayed any
obvious mage powers
unless the hint of static was coming from the
security guard, a
Kingscourt flunky, who would possess at least some
low-grade magic. The
guarda stood alert, scanning the station with a
wary gaze.
As the waitress
approached her, she chewed a wad of gum so
large her tongue
appeared each time her jaw moved. Pillar lowered
her eyes at the
unattractive sight, retreating into her shell rather
than feel the
waitress’s turbulent emotions. But waitress's gaze rested
on Pillar’s long
narrow face with its wider than normal mouth and
knife-like nose. A
flash of pity crossed her roundish face. Pillar sat
straighter and
smiled, revealing as many teeth as possible.
“Ham and cheese with
extra cheese, please,” said Pillar.
“Cost you extra.”
Pillar almost rolled
her eyes, but she had learned to contain her
reactions, much to
her foster mother/mentor’s relief. “So add it to
my bill.” The
waitress clomped towards the kitchen window of the
grill, writing on her
pad.
Piercing shrieks
echoed off
the high ceilings. Pillar’s head jerked
around to see three
kids running away from a taller boy, who
stomped after them
like a bear. He growled, making them scream
louder. Their bright
auras rose and fell with their screams.
Looks like they’re
having fun.
The game continued
until one of the kids tripped over a suitcase.
Angry words erupted
from an older woman. She wore a hat, ringed
with flowers, as if
she were someone important, but important people didn’t take buses. They owned
their own cars. The kids ignored
her just as Pillar
would have.
Scanning the area,
Pillar tested her developing talent for reading
auras. The slow dance
of different
shimmering colors popping
through the light
bluish-green glow of their life pulse fascinated her,
but she concentrated
on possible threats. Everyone in the lobby felt
like nulls to Pillar.
But her eavesdropping on the mage elders, talking
to her guardian, told
her they worried about magical attacks from demon-kind. While no adult talked
much about them, Pillar assumed
demons could
camouflage themselves and hide behind shields.
Otherwise, they
wouldn’t be so hard to find.She shuddered, not
wanting to think of
demons possessing people. Doubt if any demons
would dare to hunt
here, anyway.
The thought comforted
Pillar, and she relaxed. The waitress arrived and picked a plate off her ladened arm to plunk it on the
counter with a sigh.
Pillar smiled as the
waitress scooted around the counter to the
tables against the
wall. “Thanks. It looks delicious.” The waitress bustled away without looking
back, and Pillar shrugged.
Not wanting to
dribble cheese on the new tee she’d bought in
the museum shop,
Pillar leaned forward to take a bite of her toasted
ham and cheese
sandwich. The gooey cheese oozed out the sides,
over her fingers. She
licked them and her lips. The cost of adding
extra cheese was
worth it, making a perfect ending to her first solo
venture into Taddledon.
The ride home would be dull in comparison
to the carefree day
she had enjoyed. At least her stomach wouldn't be
growling.
The PA system belched
news of another arriving bus, adding to
the racket bouncing off the station walls. The garbled words made
no sense. Pillar
ignored the announcement as she licked her fingers
clean. The tenor of
the air shifted. The hair on her nape rose. Pillar
glanced back towards
the benches in the lobby.
Taking another bite
of her gooey sandwich, Pillar licked her lips
as she searched for
the disturbance in the station’s energy. The power became so intense even
Pillar’s weak talent felt the rising pulse. A
chill crawled across
her shoulders and down her back. Pillar turned
around. Her eyes
locked on a tangled-haired girl, clutching a backpack in her hands and using
the wall by the platform doors to protect
her back. The girl's
eyes grew wider as she scanned the station.
Pillar's frizzy hair
stood at attention. A strange odor, the like of
which she'd never
smelled in Osseran, wafted from the outside doors.
Her stomach churned,
and Pillar dropped her no longer appetizing
sandwich.
What's going on? That
girl just doesn't feel like a normal, but she
shouldn't make my
stomach want to heave.
A Northern California gal, M. K. Theodoratus has been intrigued by
fantasy since she discovered comic books and the land of Oz. Some of her
early favorites were A. Merritt, Andre Norton, Catherine L. Moore, and
Fritz Lieber. She has traveled through many fantasy worlds since then.
Now she enjoys reading Lee Child, Patricia Briggs, Sharyn McCrumb, Neil
Gaiman, and Carol O’Connell among others.
fantasy since she discovered comic books and the land of Oz. Some of her
early favorites were A. Merritt, Andre Norton, Catherine L. Moore, and
Fritz Lieber. She has traveled through many fantasy worlds since then.
Now she enjoys reading Lee Child, Patricia Briggs, Sharyn McCrumb, Neil
Gaiman, and Carol O’Connell among others.
When she’s not disappearing into other writer’s worlds, she’s
creating her own alternative worlds — that of Andor where demons prey
and that of the Far Isle Half-Elven where she explores the social and
political implications of genetic drift on a hybrid elf/human people.
Magic and mayhem are her favorite topics.
creating her own alternative worlds — that of Andor where demons prey
and that of the Far Isle Half-Elven where she explores the social and
political implications of genetic drift on a hybrid elf/human people.
Magic and mayhem are her favorite topics.
She now lives in Colorado with her old man and two lap cats.
Twitter Address: https://twitter.com/kaytheod
Facebook Address: https://www.facebook.com/M-K-Theodoratus-Fantasy-Writer-235376633158175/
Thank you for hosting!
Media Contact:
Dorothy Thompson
Pump Up Your Book
P.O. Box 643
Chincoteague Island, Virginia 23336
Email: thewriterslife@gmail.com
Scary running away from anything, let alone demons
ReplyDeleteLooks like an interesting book.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the info.
I think the book sounds great and I would love to read it.
ReplyDelete