“Krista, my time is drawing near and there’s nothing I can do to stop it. But if you trust me at all, know that what I’ve told you is the truth and that it will come to pass. Hold on to what I’ve told you when times grow dark in your life and have faith that what I have told you will come to pass.”Krista laid her head back down, hoping that Sansa’s words would come true, but all she felt was a growing sense of dread for what the future would bring.JasperRolf followed me down the main street of the village of Thunder Ridge Castle. The village itself was called Ta’arny and I had visited it often since my arrival at the castle. It was like walking through a part of living history, a history that was now mine. The town’s people left me alone for the most part after acknowledging my presence with a warm welcome of good morning, which I returned in kind. They knew where I was headed.I was headed to the chapel, which was the center of every Valley Lander town. The building wasn’t pretenti
Snap!“Ouch!”I painfully shook my finger hard through the air. My whole body hurt from touching the shimmering curtain, especially my heart.I looked at Thaddeus and I saw him smile grimly and say, “Sometimes, just like seeing, feeling is believing. Put your right thumb on the sword of the coat of arms and hold it there for a second.”I did so and watched in disbelief as the veil of shimmering light over the doorway disappeared, to be replaced by the entrance of a hallway beyond. Thaddeus stepped into it and I followed him. We moved into the darkness, which was only dark for a moment, as the floor began to illuminate with ambient light, the existence of which I couldn’t have explained if I had bothered to try. As Thaddeus progressed down the long hallway, there was a feeling of falling through space that made me feel slightly queasy. Suddenly, we came to a room at the end of the hall that lit up brilliantly as we entered.“This, my boy, is what it’s all about,” Thaddeus said, gesturin
Thaddeus was looking at me intently, as if his next breath hung on my unspoken words, “So what would your course of action be Jasper?”“I would destroy this room and all its contents and stop playing this game of hide and seek.”Thaddeus’s scrutiny of me did not waver in the slightest, “And what of the council’s demands for the preservation of these works and the possibility of needing some of these secrets to defeat the Zoarinian invasion of our land?”“My first duty is to the people and not the well being of the council’s political motivations. Second, I will live and fall in this life according to my own merits and the strength that the Creator endows me with and not rely on dusty secrets of questionable origin to deliver me the victory.”Thaddeus smiled and I saw him relax visibly, “Good, that is what I hoped you would say. It relieves me to hear you say what you just did.”“What did my father say?” I asked softly.A dark look came over Thaddeus’s face for a moment and he didn’t an
Later that day the slavers stopped to make camp in an abandoned village. The girls were herded into an old shack and made to stand against a wall stretched out in a line. Krista was the farthest one from the door of the shack. Standing at the door to block any attempt at escape stood a wiry, evil looking slaver with crooked dirty teeth. He did nothing but grin and wink at the girls suggestively.Fearful whispers began to rise among the girls. Abruptly, their whispers were interrupted by the opening of the door. Surprisingly, a woman stepped through the door and the brief moment of hope that rose up within Krista swiftly turned cold and died painfully.By her clothes and the manner in which the woman displayed herself, Krista recognized the woman for what she was. She was the madam of a whore house or something close to it. She had come to buy new product for her customers.Krista turned her eyes away and stared straight ahead, seeing her fate sealed. The woman came closer to inspect th
The man pulled her around to the other side of the carriage toward where her new master still stood. She kept her head lowered, not wanting to show them the tears of frustration that were welling up in her eyes. Once again, she felt her master’s cool hand touch her chin and direct the movement of her head upward. Expecting to see anger reflected in his eyes, she was surprised instead to see a look of understanding.“Freedom can often prove elusive to many of us in life, but one can find peace if they surrender to the inevitable. Even the life of a slave can be bearable, if one surrenders enough.”He released her jaw and turned towards the mansion that must be his home. It sat at the end of a street, which gave it more privacy from the other mansions that lined the street. Its architecture rose impressively up before her. Still, it struck a balance of not being overly pretentious despite its grandeur. Everything seemed extremely well maintained and in order, like the man himself.The ma
Cautiously she made her way over to it and peered out into the dimly lit corridor. It must be late at night since she heard not a sound except for the chirping of insects outside the mansion. No one was in the hallway, but, at the end of the hall, light streamed out of an open doorway.Drawn like a moth to a flame, she slipped into the hallway and softly approached the light, diligent not to make any noise in her approach. Reaching the opened door, she peered in and beheld a room of a definitely more masculine reflection.Sitting behind a big oaken desk to one side of the room sat the man who had bought her. He had piles of paper before him, with which he seemed very busy.He was writing something down when he spoke, “Come in and have a seat.”He pointed to a chair across from the desk without even looking up at her. Surprised, Krista jumped back from the doorway. How had he known she was there? She debated about running back down the hallway to her room, but what good would that do? S
Coming back to reality, I made sure that I had Thaddeus’s letter to his spy contact. The letter was a small word for it, for all intents and purposes it appeared to be a two hundred year old book complete with musty stained pages.Thaddeus got a bit too much into the whole spy/intrigue thing I thought to myself. But then he had managed to keep the family secrets safe during his watch over them. Now it was up to me to finish it.There were only going to be five of us on the expedition; Father John, Seth, two of my grandfather’s trusted men at arms and myself. I would have preferred a party made up entirely of my men, but all of my men were busy improving the fighting abilities of the castle’s fighting men and couldn’t easily be spared from that task.The only reason Seth was going was because he was useless as a teacher and he had insisted on going so repeatedly that I had finally agreed. Father John hadn’t seemed overly excited one way or the other when I told him that he was to accomp
Making my way around yet another pile of more priceless artifacts, I saw where the brighter lights led. Ahead of me was a circular area that was brightly lit up. It was not jumbled with artifacts like the rest of the gallery. Five pedestals stood alone in the space, with each pedestal displaying a book. The fifth pedestal was in the middle and its book was larger than the others.I drew close and looked at the first book’s title, Matthew. I went to the surrounding pedestals and read the names, Mark, Luke and John. I had heard of the names. These were the four gospels authored by disciples of the Son of the Creator.Excitement rose in my heart at the greatness of my discovery. What had Thaddeus said was wrong with these books? I carefully reached out and picked up the book nearest to me, which was the Book of John. Opening it, I began to read.I came to a verse that I had memorized by heart from one of the walls of the chapel in Ta’arny and confusion rose within me as I read it. It was
Those nights were not about love. It was about possession and reclaiming his authority over her body. He would force her to know him to be master, not the bastard traitor.If he had his way, Kebachet would remain gone. Unfortunately, her brother was her link to life. He must fulfill his duty to her to calm the storm and keep the demon within dormant. Without him, earth would be lost.Sha’ní would not simply die of a broken heart as Charles would do. Her grief matched that of Lilene’s personality, and she possessed the blood of Set. One could imagine the kind of evil she could become. She would never betray those she loved; however, if she felt betrayed, the consequences were grim.KebachetKebachet roamed the outer realms and forged relationships with allied gods. He never bothered with the mortals. They were simply pawns in a bigger game. The gods were the true power of their world. They would reach out to him and whisper floating rumors on occasion. In return, Kebachet agreed to aid
and pulled her to him.Her body collided into a wall of hard muscles and then conformed to it as he dove for her lips with a searing kiss. She held on to him and soaked in his desire for her. She wanted him to take her to the magical place he showed her on the first night.Horace slammed the door behind her, making the decorative weapons on the wall rattle. He shredded her clothing into tatter scraps while he pushed her further into his chambers.His scent is disgusting. You belong to me, Beautiful. It seems you need reminding of that, his deep voice growled in her mind.Sha’ní could not respond to his displeasure. His hands worked in a frenzy on her body as his mouth nipped and sucked in places that made her weak.She landed on her back on the bed with a bounce, and Horace’s vampire form pounced. His passion sheathed inside with a punishing strike fueled with his hot jealousy. She was dizzy from his onslaught and could hardly comprehend what was happening.“Give me your love, Sha’ní,
Sha’ní cupped his jaw and gently turned him to face her. Her crystal eyes begged him to fall in their depth and share her love for eternity.His sins still clung to him even though he was pardoned. He was still capable of horrors that would give anyone nightmares. Her soul was too pure to be tainted by him.“You are your father’s son. You have Charles ’s heart. You are cold and stubborn, yet compassionate and empathetic."You say the males of the gods are the alphas. They are the masters of the home. I see this quality in you.“You want to shut everyone out and become stronger than before. You are afraid you will become what you once were.“I have a feeling Ra gave you a new body with a new mind strong enough to resist any temptation to become what you once were in the underworld or the demon realm.”Her words and acceptance sliced him open and burned away the delicate wall he started building. How could a goddess love a demon?“You are not a demon. You never were. Your soul was only
Horace blocked most of her attacks while she cursed him and her life. She used every foul word she thought of to hit him where she hurt the most.Horace grabbed both her wrists and pinned them to her back. The front of her body slammed into his chest as she fought to free herself.She spit on his face. The thick saliva rolled down his cheek in thin strings, but he didn’t release her.“I hate you! You should have stayed in the shadows playing with humans. How could you do this to me!”His exposed chest was pressed against her. She only had to call his soul for help, and it would have no choice but to destroy its vessel.HoraceSha’ní’s red eyes suddenly returned to their natural color and went blank as she sagged in Horace’s grip.Jasper ’s black form appeared out of the darkness of the underworld and gazed at the precious jackal in his arms. He used his ability to paralyze Sha’ní. It would not last long.Horace carefully lowered Sha’ní to the ground, “You must fix this, brother. Her m
Kebachet’s screams quieted, and his sweaty body relaxed, forcing her to hold his weight. She panted from the strain as the last of her power trickled away.Just before she dropped Kebachet and went unconscious, the ribbon of power that connected them snapped and back lashed. A thunderous concussion smacked her mind, and a flood of emotions and images pulled her under the wave. They came so quickly that she could not filter them or make sense of what she saw. There was no up or down. The invading thoughts erased everything she experienced and latched onto her without mercy.Everything was tinted in red. The sky, the stone ground, and the monstrous creatures were all red. Her body hurt from freezing temperatures, and her chest felt like she was having a heart attack as her fist plunged on its own accord into a body and ripped its beating heart out.The red world returned with the sounds of creatures being tormented. It happened repeatedly, and each time a different innocent soul or a m
“No. They will not,” his baritone voice rumbled with an icy edge while his pale eyes continued to devour her.Sha’ní was confused and mortified and utterly attracted to him. She wanted nothing more than to please him, and she didn’t understand why he was so angry with her. But the display of his aggression was making her body warm inside, and the knots in her tummy leaked in hot drips between her thighs.Sha’ní lowered her gaze and picked at her nails, “You wish to do this in private?”“It is not my wish to be bonded to anyone. My thoughts are my own. My actions are not to be questioned. I will live as I see fit within the laws of the gods.”His words stung and tears started to blur her vision as she continued to pick at her nails. She understood he was a private person. That had already been established. It was why Jasper had been working with him.A hooked finger lifted her chin so her eyes would meet Kebachet’s gaze, “I am thankful for your gift and willingness to help me. You will
Kebachet’s entire body tensed as he pulled Sha’ní closer to him. He buried his nose into her neck and inhaled her scent. It was then she knew this soul had been lost. It broke her heart.She realized Kebachet was sharing his heart with her and willing to be venerable. It was a great honor to be let into the heart of a prideful soul who would not tolerate weakness. It meant he trusted her enough to be natural with her.Sha’ní could not imagine a world without Kebachet. She was not sure how she survived without him all of this time.A tear fell down her cheek at the thought of losing him. This soul was a warm, passionate soul. His heart was capable of love so strong it could kill an entire realm of demons.She did not understand how it could be dying when Ra made a perfect body and Jasper had control over its fate.“Brother?”Kebachet inhaled deeply, then moaned a sleepy response.“While your body was still new, your soul cried out to me and said it felt death.”“I suggest reading about
“Please,” she whispered as anxious tears stung her eyes.“Your fear is disgusting, sister. Do not disappoint me,” He warned.“But your soul...”"Is not your concern,” he interrupted, “Trust the god of the dead.”It was a silent reminder that Jasper was in control, and if he wanted his soul, he would have taken it long ago. Trust was hard to give when it had been broken by lies and secrets.She swallowed hard, then forced her back to the two males in her life who she loved deeply and teleported to Horace’s chambers. Horace always had the answers. Maybe he would be willing to share his knowledge or perhaps wipe away her anxiety with his magnificent body.Her core coiled, and warmth seeped through her as she remembered the night he took her to a magical place.Sha’ní let herself in without knocking. It felt a bit strange inviting herself into someone else’s home, but he said she had access to his chambers at any time during their relationship.The god of war sat in a simple wooden chair
“What’s so funny?”“You, sister. You are lonely, yet a powerful god desires you, and you resist him.“You are not daddy’s little girl. Respect him in his presence. Beyond that, he does not need to know of your private life. It does not matter if he approves or not.“I assure you, Jasper understands this.”“Do you feel the same as Jasper ? Do you feel I should change my words and become a daughter worthy of the god of the dead?”“You are unique, Sha’ní,” Kebachet said before his mind slipped back into unconsciousness.Moments later, Kebachet’s soul burst with light within his chest. I see you, It whispered.Sha’ní touched the blue glow, and it pulsed in response.“Do you know who you are?”I am Kebachet, son of Jasper and Charles .“Do you know who I am?”Daughter of Jasper and Charles .“What is your desire?”To find forgiveness from the god of the dead and the goddess of balance.“Do you wish to live?”The soul pulsed within Kebachet’s chest as it thought a moment. Yes, It wailedSha