The Legendary Warrior (Book 5), page 22
“We’re heading to the old lands,” Catherine said. “The old Prattle or Quietus. We’ll train and prepare there.”
“That’s no picnic.”
“You’re welcome to go home,” Zhou said, staring up at Marie. “No one’s making you come with us.”
“I said I was staying with you all. I meant it.”
“Fine.”
“What’s the plan?” Arimus asked wearily. “When we get to the old lands? There’s not much there to work with.”
“That’s what I want,” Catherine said, still staring down at James’ grave. “There’s nothing established. We can work as we see fit, and if necessary, we’ll build our own Kingdom. I think that it’s time that I let Allay go for now. To discover what they want for themselves. I’m going to start over elsewhere. I know that right now everything seems bleak, but the sun will rise again. Winter always turns to spring. There is forever a balance in the world, and it would be foolish to think that for how horrible this day has been, there won’t be one that is just as wonderful.” Catherine turned to the rest of the group.
“We are Sages. Luxury and peace is not what we signed up for. We’re warriors, ready to set our lives down and fight for others at a moment’s notice. We will go into seclusion for now, but when the call rings throughout the lands, we will be back, and we will save them all.”
Arimus and the others couldn’t help but smile.
“Let’s head out,” Catherine said. “I just need one last moment with my husband.” They began leaving without a word, heading northwest. When she was sure they were out of earshot, she sighed and cast her eyes down at James’ grave.
“I never thought I would lose you this soon, my love.” She swallowed hard. “It’s taking all the strength I can muster not to break down in front of them, but don’t you worry about me. I’ll…I’ll be okay in time. I have a lot to do,” she stopped to laugh. “I won’t work too hard though. Don’t want to go back to old habits. I know. I know…I’ll make sure to have some fun. I’ll probably try working on those manifestations you’re always trying to get me to practice with. Recreate our beach. I can go there sometimes…where it’s quiet. I can talk to you. And…I hope you’ll listen. You better be listening!” she chuckled and wiped a tear from her eye. “Don’t have too much fun without me. Tell Kyran, Chloe, Achan and Scarlet I said hi. If Dominic’s there, kick him in the nuts. You’ll enjoy that. Um…I think that’s it.”
Catherine folded her hands.
“I’m glad I got to see you one last time before you were taken from me. I almost forgot what joy felt like, even in a couple months. You’ll always be my soul mate, and I love you, James. Go on some adventures, and when I join you someday, you can tell me all about them. Oh, and thank you. Thank you for being the best husband a girl could hope for.”
Catherine blew him a kiss and took a deep breath. Just as she was about to turn around, she heard a shout in the distance, exactly from the area where the group had headed. She gave James’ grave one last look and then she ran toward her friends and family.
As she got closer, she saw three Quietus standing in front of them. Their scythes were pointed at her family, and they were sneering at them. Catherine stepped through the group and went to the front of her pack.
“What’s is this?” she demanded as one of the Quietus smiled wide. “We’re not near your camp, and we’re just passing through.”
“Doesn’t matter,” the Quietus said. “For you, Queen, this whole forest is considered trespassing. But that’s not all. It just so happens that we were looking for you and your merry band anyways. Seems you have a price on your head, by order of Seeker, the King of Allay.”
“It’s good we left,” Arimus groaned.
“Seeker is King?” Catherine said in surprise. “Well, that didn’t take long. But why are we wanted?”
“Seeker wants no more trouble from you and your people. Especially the one named Bastion. It has come to light that he is the one responsible for the murder of Hakin and Lakrymos.”
“Bastion isn’t with us.”
“It doesn’t matter. You are all traitors, and will be treated as such.”
“And so the Quietus are just going to side with this decree?”
“Considering how you locked us up, we would have done this for free.”
“We wanted to wait for your order,” Zhou said to Catherine. “We didn’t want to engage in a fight with them unless you wanted it. I know you would want to work out a deal if possible.”
“We know how you are with diplomacy,” Talia replied. Catherine scoffed and turned back to the Quietus with both hands on her hips.
“I’m done with diplomacy. I’m tired of being trampled on. If it’s a fight everyone wants, then that’s what they’ll expect. The Kingdoms will learn that they will not take our group lightly when they come up against us. If you Quietus want a fight, then you got one! But it won’t be easy.”
Catherine unsheathed her eidolon from her hip and stuck it into the face of the Quietus leader, a half-smile curled up on her lips.
“Come and take our lives if you dare!”
Zhou, Talia, Arimus, Marie, Daisy, and Sway all grinned and took out their respective eidolons and standard swords. The Quietus looked at each of them and threw up their hands. The leader gave them a nod and then they all turned and ran.
Ashalynn smiled from behind them all, watching the seven warriors, all of considerable skill—either of action or word—standing boldly together, strong and true. She knew, as well as they, that it was the beginning of something grand and new.
Chapter 21 – Just a Boy
She stood in the training room teeming with rage. How could he not take her life? The act would have sealed his fate and transformed him into the focused warrior that Allay needed. After all the suffering she had put him through. After all the pain she had orchestrated. And still, he was too soft. Now she would have to do it all herself. She would have to somehow train the young Sages at her disposal, but they were so weak, and there was so little time.
She should have known better than to put all her faith in a boy. No matter how talented and strong he may be.
Orchid huffed and clenched her fists tight, to the point that they left marks in the palms of her hands. She was on the verge of destroying the Academy itself when she heard the door open behind her.
“WHAT IS IT?!” she screamed, knowing that whatever student had come through the door, they would now become the substitute for the school’s destruction. But what she could not believe was what she saw instead.
It was a Yama.
Stepping casually through the door.
Walking slowly toward her with folded hands, she glared at it with crazed eyes, trying to determine if it was trick sent by Catherine or if…Maker forbid…it was the real thing.
The Yama stopped in its tracks and waited for her to confirm his composition. She unsheathed her dagger eidolon and pointed it at the creature. Only a few seconds passed before she started sweating, her lips began to tremble, and her knees quivered with fear.
It was too soon!
“Satisfied?” the Yama asked her in a throaty voice, sounding more distinguished than it had any right to. To her, they were nightmares. Nightmares didn’t try to coax you into a false sense of security.
Orchid grit her teeth and prepared for the Yama to strike, but unbeknownst to her, the deed was already done.
Her head rolled off of her body and onto the floor.
The Yama was now behind her, having moved so fast that the great Sage hadn’t even seen it.
The Yama folded his hands together and examined the room.
“This is a nice school,” it said aloud, and then it smiled.
* * *
She fluttered her eyes and Bastion backed away from the beds so that he wouldn’t startle her. He figured that one of the beds in the Quietus village would be a lot more comfortable than his rock hard biceps, so he carried her there.
The mysterious girl yawned and stretched out her arms and legs. After she was done, she rubbed a hand through her hair, tussling it all over the pillow, and then she glanced over at him. Bastion was taken aback by how beautiful she was, but he didn’t want to make a fool of himself, so he said nothing. He didn’t know where the girl had come from, and he suspected that the stones were a big part of it. But he didn’t want to jump to conclusions yet.
“Hi there,” she said, giving him a smile that made his stomach flutter.
“Hi,” was all he could manage to say. She sat up in the bed and looked down at it then back at him again.
“You tucked me in?”
“Would you have preferred I didn’t?”
“No, no. It’s fine,” she laughed. “It’s just that no one’s ever done that for me before.”
“Me neither. I imagine it’s quite nice.”
“It was glooooorious,” she said, her eyes full of amusement. Bastion let a chuckle slip.
“So where did you come from?” he asked. She raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“Asking a girl questions without breakfast?”
“Do you even eat?”
“Um,” she patted her stomach. “It’s rumbling, so I think it’s a fair bet.”
“Well before I head out, I would like to ask you some questions if you don’t mind.”
“Why? You don’t trust me?”
“Let’s just say that I have good reasons to be careful.”
“A mysterious man. I like that.”
“Where did you come from?” She scowled at the repeated question but then she gave a sigh and gave in.
“The other side of the world,” she said with a smile.
“And why are you here? Who sent you? Because just appearing out of thin air is not something people do. It’s not how they’re born.”
“I was sent by my masters,” she said, growing more solemn. “I’m here to tell you of your purpose, and what you’re supposed to do.”
“And who are your masters?”
“I can’t tell you that because I’m not sure myself. But…I know that I’m here to accomplish my mission.”
“I’m tired of people telling me what I’m supposed to be and do. I’ll figure that out on my own.”
“But I could easily—”
“That’s how it’s going to be!” he snapped, and the girl grew silent. Bastion sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. It’s just…I want to figure out who I am by myself.”
“Can I do that too? Figure out who I am? Can I do that with you?”
“I don’t know,” Bastion laughed. “I mean, you could tag along if you like, but I really don’t want anyone telling me what I have to do anymore.”
“Fair enough. But…does that mean you don’t want me to answer you at all if you have questions?”
“I didn’t say that. If I ask, you can tell me.”
“Okay. I’ll remember that. Is there anything you want to know right now?”
“Your name. That would be a good place to start.”
“My name is Lily,” she said sweetly. “And I am the embodiment of the five stones of power. I contain all five inside of me.”
Bastion looked at her in surprise, then he shook off her response.
“I don’t care about the power you have inside of you. I just wanted to know your name.”
“Well, I wanted to tell you,” she said, sticking out her tongue. “That’s what I am. It doesn’t mean that’s who I am, but still, I figured you should know. So what about you? What are you really?”
Bastion thought about it for a second.
He wanted to say that he was a lost soul.
A Sage with unfathomable power.
A murderer.
A friend.
A messiah.
A King.
A god.
The harbinger of peace.
The harbinger of destruction.
Death Incarnate.
But he opted for none of these.
“I’m just a boy in the presence of a pretty girl,” he said. And then he left the room.
Lily smiled warmly, ran her fingers idly through a few strands of her hair, and then she got up from the bed and followed right behind.
This trilogy concludes in:
The Return of the Sages
(Book #6 of the Sage Saga)
Available December 1st
An excerpt from Julius St. Clair’s latest fantasy series:
Obsidian Sky (Book #1 of the Obsidian Saga)
Chapter 1 – The Day the World Ended
The one room schoolhouse was painfully tiny, and even more so now that nearly half of the village of Lowsunn was beginning to crowd in, each individual clamoring for a coveted seat on one of the few oak pews in the center and consequently, forcing anyone that was late to stand upon their aching feet. The stampede of villagers kicked up a cloud of settled dust and the floorboards creaked under the collective weight. Though there were nearly two hundred in attendance, no one said a word, the only sound being the groaning of the structure itself.
All of the extra desks and chairs had been removed. All unnecessary equipment had been locked away, and even the Elders of Lowsunn were surprised to see just how many students were able to fit into the boxy room. Within minutes, the only part of the floor not occupied by a pair of weary shoes was a meager five foot square space in the front. There the science/history teacher stood with a maniacal smile, causing a few of his colleagues nearby to wince in disgust. Not one member of the excited audience, young or old, cared for teacher politics though, and so they did their best to ignore the exchange. And really, it didn’t matter how much the other teachers hated Mr. Young. Nothing short of a fire was going to make them disperse. For the only time in the entire year, he had the spotlight, he had the goods, and everyone in attendance was there to make sure they were expediently delivered.
Mr. Young surveyed his audience with glee, rubbing his sweaty hands onto his custom red silk shirt as he silently hoped the ancient pews, brought in by his teacher aides, would be able to bear the weight. As the last of the village, a few of the elderly, squeezed in just beyond the double doors in the back, he cleared his throat and surveyed the room. They all waited for him to begin, giving their undivided attention and awe. Since the building only had six windows, three on each side, there was already little light in the room. Faceless bodies now blocked the meager sunlight that fought to enter, and the room was soon cast in a cloak of unsettling shadow. As unidentifiable eyes blinked off rapidly in Mr. Young’s direction, he closed his in satisfaction.
He concentrated.
And then beams of light shot through each of the windows, through the barrier of bodies, and into the room like a flood of water, filling every space in a matter of seconds. After it had maximized its presence in the room, most of it suddenly disappeared, and all that remained was a spotlight over Mr. Young, the source appearing to come from the windowless and moldy flat ceiling above. It was impossible for light to originate from that point, yet it did. The audience gasped in delight. Many had seen this presentation several times, but the moment never ceased to amaze. How Mr. Young was able to call forth the sun to magnify him, even through the solid blockades of both body and object, was a subject of much debate. It had to be magic.
He cleared his throat once more, and a blanket of silence descended upon the audience.
“Ten years ago,” he began. “The Advent came.”
As his sentence ended, both the room and Mr. Young were suddenly cast into utter darkness. The bare wall behind the history teacher came alive, and an animated display of the universe came into view. It spread across the room like an oceanic wave, lapping against the shore, except it never retracted once it splashed against the other side. It trapped the audience in its holographic projection and held them there. Stars twinkled like diamonds, moons orbited around foreign planets and colorful nebulas shot out at the students in 3-D fashion. The audience gasped and awed at the spectacle as space danced around them gracefully, performing a waltz that even the best of them could not imitate. Mr. Young continued.
“We call it Advent because the definition says it all: it was the beginning of something already anticipated…it was the end of the world. We all knew the day would come. We just weren’t sure how. Ten years ago, we received our answer.” The audience gasped in horror.
Mr. Young grinned and scanned the room once more before he proceeded, watching them all witness his power, each one falling under his spell…well, there was one who was uninterested, but there was good reason for that, he supposed.
“Aidan, pay attention,” Mr. Young called out to the young man in the far left corner. Only his short spiked black hair, and half of his bored eyes were visible amongst the sea of silhouetted faces and little lighting.
“Sure,” he replied easily, refocusing his attention to the holographic stars. Satisfied, Mr. Young resumed his presentation. The animation of the universe changed in an instant, and zoomed in on a planet that was familiar to everyone. Amassed by a collection of six large continents and very few bodies of water, they stared at their brown, green and red planet as if it was an old acquaintance. At the other end of the universal map was a comet, half their world’s size, streaking across the black expanse with a red-hot tail, its trajectory directly in line with their home world.
“We don’t know where it came from,” Mr. Young said, stooping down behind their planet. “Or its exact composition. Whether it was a hunk of rock, a ship, or a massive, sentient being. All we know for sure…is how it changed our way of life forever.”
The display flickered and suddenly the comet smashed mercilessly into the side of the planet, creating an explosion that splashed the room in a light so intense, everyone, including Mr. Young, had to avert their eyes for fear of going blind. He kept speaking as the light began to subside.
“The comet impacted the eastern hemisphere with a force that could be heard and felt all over the world, changing the terrain and taking half of our population with it. Millions…died instantly…” He paused to wipe a hand across his sweating forehead. “We all thought it was the end – the apocalypse, and in a sense, one could say that it was. That era had been eradicated in an instant…but it appeared that the survivors were destined for a greater purpose. The World of Obsidian had been altered, not just physically, but also spiritually. The population that had not been annihilated were transformed.”
