Roiling
red, orange, and yellow flames crackled all around, engulfing the
wooden walls of the cabin in a hazy inferno. Gloria choked on the
thick, black smoke as she crawled on the floor, feeling her way to
the door. The erratic flickering of light off her copper hair made it
look as if she was already on fire. She had been lucky enough to
avoid that, though quite narrowly. She burned her hands in a foolish
attempt to save the books, and the pages turned to blackened ash even
as she recoiled.