The Sun Dwellers

But then I see it: a light. A circle of white-yellow, as bright as I’ve ever seen, like a halo, streaming into the end of the tu

“Is that it?” I whisper, afraid that if I raise my voice I’ll shatter the light.

Tristan nods, gri

We run now, together, still holding hands, whooping and hollering and carrying on like a couple of school kids. As we approach the end, the light is so fierce I have to shield my eyes with my hand. “It’s beautiful,” I murmur. “But how do you bear to go under it?”

Tristan laughs. “It’ll take some getting used to. Your eyes have never seen this kind of light. Here—I brought these. He hands me a pair of dark sunglasses and a floppy hat.

Gri

“Ready,” I say, my smile growing bigger than I thought possible, my heart doing leaps and spins, my skin tingling with anticipation. My life is about to be changed forever.

We step into the light, which, despite the sunglasses and hat, blinds me, forcing me to close my eyes. Still blind, I let Tristan pull me forward a few more steps, feeling more and more warmth on my skin with each pace forward. It’s a beautiful warmth, full of tingles and heat and life. I desperately want to open my eyes, to see the sky, to see the clouds, but I know my eyes aren’t ready yet; they’re still acclimating themselves to this new world.

We stand in the sun for a few minutes, just soaking it up. “Want to try opening your eyes?” Tristan asks.

Yes, I nod hungrily. I start with a squint, but am forced to shut my eyes tight again as the sunlight tears through my retinas. Every thirty seconds I try again, each time trying to open them wider and wider before clamping them shut. By the tenth or eleventh try I can keep them open for a few seconds, each time getting a peek at the world around me. First the red of the sky, so alien and bloody and big—bigger than anything I’ve seen in my entire life. Then a scattering of clouds, thin and hazy and yellow-gray and floating—actually moving!—across the sky. But none of it is how my grandma described it to me when she passed a story told by her grandmother to her mother and then to her, down to me. The sky should be blue, rich and majestic and awe-inspiring. The red reminds me so much of death. And the clouds! According to my grandmother, they should be white and fluffy, “like the beds of angels,” but instead they’re like fiery wraiths, scattering blades of sun like instruments of death across the barren landscape.

Next, something dark with wings loops across the sky. “A bat!” I scream. “They have bats!”

Tristan chuckles. “They do have bats but they’re in the caves and only come out at night. That’s a bird. A hawk I think they call them.”

“A bird,” I murmur, growing bolder as I keep my eyes open for good this time. I scan the area around me, trying to commit every detail to memory.

“I’m happy to be here with you, to share this moment,” Tristan says, cocking his head toward me.

I let go of his hand, curl both my arms around his back, interlace my fingers just above his waist. Look up into his navy-blue eyes, which glisten with emotion under the brightness of the real sun. We ignore the beauty around us and just look at each other for half a minute, until Tristan finally laughs.

“What are you thinking?” he asks.

“I—I…” I can’t get the words out, not because I don’t want to say them, but because I’m feeling so much that I almost can’t breathe.

Tristan cuts off my awkward stuttering with a kiss that takes any remaining breath I have completely out of me, swells my heart as big as a balloon, brings back the neurologically manufactured tingles and buzzing that we thought we’d lost.

When he pulls away I can breathe again, and the words that seemed so difficult to say a moment ago, feel so effortless now. “I lo—”

“I know,” he says, cutting me off. His smile his bigger and more beautiful than ever before.

I laugh, swatting him playfully on the arm.

That’s when someone clears their throat off to the side. We both jump slightly, and turn to see who has managed to sneak up on us. Instinctively I draw my sword, which hangs from my belt—a precaution we both agreed was necessary.

Three young women stand before us, deeply ta

She speaks, her voice firm and full of authority. “In the name of the sun goddess, tell me who you are,” says the first earth dweller I’ve ever met.

###

Keep reading for a special bonus short story about what was happening to the moon dwellers while Adele and Tristan were on their mission, and for a sneak peak at the first book in the Country Saga (a Dwellers sister series), Fire Country, coming in February 2013!

Acknowledgments

It’s strange writing acknowledgments for a single book when those whom I’m indebted to have helped me with far more than just the pages of this novel. First and foremost are my readers, who have taken a chance on one or more of my books over the last whirlwind year, spending your hard earned dollars on an unknown author, and giving me the chance to make my dreams come true, as I’ve embarked on writing as a full-time career. Without you, I’d still be sitting in a cubicle, dozens of stories still stuck in my head, waiting to be told. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

To my editor, Christine LePorte, we started this journey together with The Moon Dwellers, and now this is our third book together! Your wisdom and dedication to maintaining the quality of the Dwellers Saga is truly admirable. I can’t wait to see how the next three books we create together turn out!

A super, special (dare I say ginormous) thanks to my creative and dedicated marketing team at shareAread, particularly Nicole Passante and Karla Calzada, who have helped to get a ball rolling down a hill that won’t stop for many years to come. I’m forever in your debt.

A humble thanks to my magnificent (and honest) beta team who gently pushed The Sun Dwellers in the right direction, and very wisely told me to get A

To my unbelievably supportive friends in my Goodreads Fan Group, I can never thank you enough for what you’ve done (and continue to do) for me. To have the group grow to such an incredible size in less than 6 months is simply mind-boggling.

And last but not least, I just want to say that the cover is once again perfect for the book, which I could never achieve on my own. So thanks to Tony Wilson at Winkipop Designs; you are the finest artist-ninja-surfer I know. I can’t wait to see the cover for the final Dwellers book, The Earth Dwellers.

Discover

other books by David Estes available through the author’s official website: