At Speculative Chic, we feature a lot of authors who share everything from their favorite things to the inspiration for their work. But why not also share their fiction? Welcome to Fiction Friday, where you’ll be able to sample the fiction of a variety of authors, including those who write at Speculative Chic! Today, we’re featuring guest author Kyoko M, whose fourth installment of her Of Cinder & Bone series comes out in October, so we decided to give you a chance to catch up on the series now, with the third installment, Of Dawn and Embers. And don’t miss the excerpt from book 1, Of Cinder and Bone, or book 2, Of Blood and Ashes!
About the Book
Of Dawn and Embers (2019)
Written by: Kyoko M.
Genre: Science Fantasy
Series: Of Cinder & Bone Book 3
It’s been six months since Dr. Rhett “Jack” Jackson and Dr. Kamala Anjali had their dragon cloning project shut down by the government. Just when they think they’ve gotten their lives back together, an agency within the government hits them with another suckerpunch: a criminal organization has cloned dozens of dragons in order to hold vicious dragon fighting rings. The government recruits Jack and Kamala to help them track down the organization. Jack and Kamala set out to put a stop to the illegal fights before any more dragons die…or worse, escape.
Of Dawn and Embers is the third novel in Kyoko M’s sci-fi/contemporary fantasy series, following Of Cinder and Bone and Of Blood and Ashes.
Currently Available from: Amazon || Barnes & Noble
The Rest of the Series
Of Dawn and Embers Excerpt
“Go!” Jack shouted. “Get everyone out of that building now!”
Before Calloway could move, bubbles frothed beneath the inky water, swirling into a small funnel. A huge spray hit him in the face and then something emerged.
Calloway jumped down from the pool and waved at the SWAT officers who had begun to enter the container. “Close the door! Now!”
Seconds later, a Nordic sea serpent came screeching out of the giant pool.
The dragon grabbed its webbed feet, tipped with three-inch long claws, onto the rim of the pool, and hauled its heavy body from the water. It was jet-black with two burning, bright blue eyes that matched the bioluminescent color along its back in wide fins much like a moray eel’s. It stood on all fours at over eight feet tall and over twenty-feet long from snout to tail.
“Shit!” The female SWAT officer opened fire as she backpedaled towards the shipping container’s entrance. “Calloway, get clear!”
He raced towards the door while she kept firing until her Sig clicked empty. Divots appeared in the dragon’s thick black skin, but it didn’t bleed. It screeched and charged her, swatting her to one side like a rag doll. She cried out and hit the side of the container, crumpling into an unconscious heap.
“Shit!” Calloway swore, dodging a swipe from the dragon. He threw himself into a roll and grabbed the fallen officer’s arm, hefting her as he headed for the door. He squeezed his way out as the other officers swung it shut and latched it.
The sea serpent let out another ghostly wail from inside the container and threw its huge body against the door. An enormous dent appeared.
Calloway shook his head. “No way that’s gonna hold. Evacuate.”
Shannon shoved his way over to Calloway, carrying the net launcher. “Don’t panic, son. Everybody stay calm.”
The container’s door buckled another couple of inches as the dragon rammed it again.
“Shannon, don’t be an idiot,” Libby snarled. “The net’s not going to hold something that size.”
He gritted his teeth. “I thought you said this thing is made of diamond wire.”
“It is, but it’s designed to catch anything the size of Pete or smaller. That dragon has to weigh a ton, maybe more. My brother’s right. Get those officers out of there and regroup.”
“Negative,” he said, slinging the launcher onto his back. “Give me that shotgun.”
The SWAT officer next to him obeyed. “You, you, and you, we’re gonna hold the line. Get everyone else out of here and get me a goddamn chopper now.”
The door crunched outward with another blow. “Now would be the time for one of you egghead dragon experts to offer some advice.”
“Listen to Calloway,” Kamala said. “Bullets won’t penetrate its skin. Its got literally inches and inches of blubber that protect it from the cold. Not even the shotgun shells will hurt it. If you leave its territory, you have a chance to survive.”
“It’s an aquatic species,” Jack continued. “Even if it chases you, it has to eventually go back to its water source.”
CRUNCH went the door. “How long can it survive outside of the water?” Calloway asked.
“Hours. Think penguin or frog.”
“See?” Calloway snapped to Shannon. “You can’t do anything. You’re going to get these people killed for no reason.”
CRUNCH. CRUNCH. “And what if this thing goes stomping around a nearby neighborhood looking for another food or water source?” Shannon shot back.
“Shannon, you hired us to advise you,” Kamala said, not hiding the fury and frustration in her voice. “We’re fucking advising you to run.”
CRUNCH. CRUNCH. CRUNCH.
Shannon ground his teeth and then growled out. “Everyone, fall back! Get to a safe distance and wait for my word.”
The SWAT officers, Calloway, and Shannon had made it halfway to the exit when the container door knocked free and the sea serpent came wriggling out of the darkness like a wraith.
The stragglers opened fire on the dragon, hoping to slow it down, but it only drew the creature’s attention instead. It snapped up one man in its jaws and ate him in two quick chomps, still screaming on his way down the dragon’s throat. It batted another man aside with its long, heavy tail and he flew several feet before he hit one of the dragon’s cages. It cornered another officer and slammed one massive clawed foot down on him, crushing his chest in seconds and then biting his head off.
While it fed, the rest of the group slammed the door shut and headed up the gravel hill towards the police vans.
“Where’s my goddamn chopper?” Shannon snarled into the link.
“ETA ten minutes,” someone answered.
“We’re gonna be sushi in ten minutes,” Calloway said, checking over his shoulder to see the entire building shuddering from the force of the dragon ramming its way out. He glanced down at the unconscious woman still draped over his shoulder and sighed internally just as he reached the police van. The other men helped lay her down safely inside it just as the rear door to the building slammed into the ground.
The sea serpent sent another chilling siren’s call out into the night air and barreled its way up the hill towards them, its eyes glowing like twin points of Greek fire.
Shannon grimaced and took a stance between himself and the vans as the dragon approached. “Get them out of here, Calloway.”
Calloway snorted. “Yeah, right, old man. Like I’m going to let your crusty ass die a hero.”
He tilted his head slightly. “Hey, docs. What’ll really piss it off?”
Kamala sighed before reluctantly answering. “You’re in a train yard, right? There’s got to be fuel and lighter fluid around. Sea serpents hate fire.”
Calloway felt a wolfish grin spreading over his lips. “Sounds like my kind of party. Shannon, see what you can get going. I’ll keep it distracted.”
He reached back and pounded his fist on the door of the nearest van twice. The three police vans peeled off up the hill and safely out of sight. Shannon handed him the shotgun. “Don’t do anything stupid, kid.”
“Would I do a thing like that?” Calloway said, cocking it and taking aim at the creature’s front legs. Shannon kicked the door to a nearby building open and ducked inside just as Calloway opened fire.
The first round of buckshot tore a hole in the serpent’s chest no more than about two inches wide. It still didn’t bleed, but he could see puckered flabs of blubber poking out from the wound. The dragon snarled and launched itself at him in a pounce.
Calloway threw himself to one side and pumped another round in, firing at its back leg. Another hole appeared and the dragon swung its tail at his head. He ducked and retreated still facing the creature, this time heading downhill. “Any ideas, crew?”
“Those things can’t climb well, right?” Larry asked. “Can he get up high?”
“Yeah, and put himself in perfect biting distance,” Libby said tartly. “That thing can push a tree over easy. I know these things like the cold, but do you think a freeze bomb might slow them down?”
“Freeze bomb?” Jack and Kamala asked in unison.
“Yeah, they’re weaponized liquid nitrogen capsules. Figured he might need them for the fire-breathing dragons.”
“Smart. That might slow it down,” Kamala said. “Aim for one of its limbs.”
“Got it,” Calloway said, grabbing a couple pellets from the fourth pocket on his belt. He aimed and launched one at the dragon’s right front leg as it made another charge towards him. The capsule burst and sent a cloud of vapor up into the air, and then the substance instantly hardened over the dragon’s elbow. It stumbled in mid-gait and landed hard, the momentum taking the dragon right into a roll headed straight for Calloway. He cursed and took off in a sprint, sliding to one side as the dragon’s titanic form smashed into the side of the building at the bottom of the hill.
“Nice shot!” Libby said. “One down, three to go.”
Calloway eased to one side as the dragon struggled to rise and hit it a second time with another pellet. It froze part of the dragon’s webbed foot to the ground.
“Calloway, wait,” Jack barked. “Don’t get too close or it’ll—”
Before he could finish the sentence, the dragon opened its jaws and spat a thick black liquid. It splattered over his helmet and drenched his upper body, blinding him.
“Shit!” He wrenched the helmet off just in time to see the serpent rise and swing its massive tail again. It hit him in the midsection and sent him flying head over heels several feet away. He landed in a heap towards the other end of the building and didn’t stir.
“Bruce!” Libby screamed.
“Shannon, get over to Calloway now!” Larry shouted. “He’s down!”
“I’m coming, kid,” the agent said in between breathless pants of exertion. “Calloway, do you copy?”
The lab team couldn’t see, but they heard the impact tremors and the shifting gravel as the dragon slithered closer to the unconscious Calloway.
“Calloway, do you copy? Answer me, dammit!”
“Bruce!” Libby cried. “Bruce, say something!”
The dragon let out another undulating hiss and then the link abruptly went silent.
They’d lost the feed.
About the Author
Kyoko M is a USA Today bestselling author, a fangirl, and an avid book reader. She has written the Amazon bestselling Black Parade urban fantasy series as well as the Of Cinder and Bone science-fiction dragon hunting series. She has a Bachelor of Arts in English Lit degree from the University of Georgia, which gave her every valid excuse to devour book after book with a concentration in Greek mythology and Christian mythology. When not working feverishly on a manuscript (or two), she can be found buried under her Dashboard on Tumblr, or chatting with fellow nerds on Twitter, or curled up with a good Harry Dresden novel on a warm Georgia night. Like any author, she wants nothing more than to contribute something great to the best profession in the world, no matter how small.
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