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REBIRTH OF A WARRIOR Chapter 38
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
REBIRTH OF A WARRIOR Chapter 39
Seth was looking at me with pleading eyes, which I ignored. I was tired of fighting this jungle and it would be nice to have a roof over my head for a change.“If you say it’s safe enough, that is, if we behave ourselves!” I said with emphasis, as I looked at Seth sternly. “And that it’ll cut time off the journey, we’ll go that way.” Father John nodded and turned his horse in the direction he had indicated.Soon, true to his word, the forest broke up into a series of grassy parks that appeared as if they were islands in the sea of trees around them.Several hours later we could see smoke in the distance up ahead of us. That must be the village run by the women that John had spoken of. This, no doubt, was going to be a unique experience.As we drew closer to the village, I began to see just how unique an experience it was going to be. It was like seeing two villages instead of just one. John had told us that the men were forced to live in the lower village and take care of the children,
REBIRTH OF A WARRIOR Chapter 40
*****I entered the village of men subconsciously looking for the man who had caught my attention earlier. I had tried to ask a passing man for help, but the man had just hurried away from me with fear written all over his face. Puzzled by their behavior, I decided to leave. I was almost out of the village when the man I had seen earlier motioned from behind a hut for me to follow him. Curious, but wary of a trap, I followed him at a distance.He led me to a group of trees near a little brook on the edge of the forest. We were out of sight of both villages. He snapped his fingers and gave a come hither motion. The little girl he’d had with him before came out from some reeds she’d been hiding behind and stood in front of the man.Putting his hands on the girl’s shoulders, the man said haltingly, “You must leave now and take the girl with you!”“Why? Am I in danger? Is she in danger?”“Yes!” The man said, nodding his head vehemently.“In danger from whom?” I asked. The man shook his hea
REBIRTH OF A WARRIOR Chapter 41
She gasped aloud, reeling back from me, holding the mortal wound in her side. Disbelief marred her beautiful face as she fell to the ground, her remaining life pulsing out onto the forest floor.“You are indeed a great man to not have allowed yourself to fall for the erotic wiles of the Vanah. I’ll give you that much of a compliment at least, Jasper .”I wheeled around toward the voice. Across the clearing sat John on his horse.“What’s going on here, John?”John laughed, “I too am a great man, even though your grandfather chose to ignore it. This book that your grandfather and you would so casually have destroyed if not for me, is the answer to our prayers! It holds the keys to eternal life!”He held the big book up that he had somehow taken from the central pedestal without me noticing.“Its author is probably Satan himself or someone mislead by him, you fool! What knowledge do you hope to glean from it that’s worth your soul?”“Spoken like a true believer of the Valley Lander versio
REBIRTH OF A WARRIOR Chapter 42
Rain pounded down on the swampy part of the forest into which I had crawled. My head was propped up against a tree trunk above the stagnate green slime of the water. I didn’t hear the horse approach or feel it tug me with its teeth as it gripped my tunic firmly at the shoulder and began to drag me further into the swamp.Pain threatened to steal the warm rest I had garnered for myself. ‘Go away pain, I’m busy,’ was my last thought before darkness overwhelmed me.For over two hours, Flin kept pulling Jasper along through the swamp by keeping hold of his tunic at the shoulder with his teeth. There was an upraised grassy knoll in the swamp, which was dominated by a large shade tree and it was to this that Flin dragged Jasper . Flin pulled his master under the shelter of the tree, away from the pounding rain and let go. The little rider on his back slipped down off the saddle and in the process fell the last several feet to the ground. Flin reached around to snuffle her head once, as if t
REBIRTH OF A WARRIOR Chapter 43
He’d arrived at the answer too late, I thought to myself in private sorrow, as I imagined his last bitter moments of regret. Getting back up from my knees, I followed the jumble of tracks leading to the shore. The roughed up area on a small tree and the tracks trailing into the water told me one thing, there had been a boat moored here.I looked bitterly down the small river. They could move faster with a boat than I ever could on horseback through the dense forest. On top of that, there was no way I could track them. They could have taken any one of a dozen tributaries that fed into larger rivers. They had at least a day and a half journey’s start on me too. Pursuit was pointless.I turned from the river’s edge with a sick spirit of failure weighing heavily upon me. What now? There was only one thing left to do. Press on, and do the best I could at holding whatever dark revelations that the book may contain at bay, until it could be found and destroyed at a later date. With a heavy he
REBIRTH OF A WARRIOR Chapter 44
Krista was somewhat taken aback by the intense stare of the man in the study with Sebastian. She was used to being stared at, but this was different. He wasn’t giving her the visual go over that said he was imagining her with her clothes off, but instead his intense gaze on her seemed to be grounded out of some deeper meaning. Many of the people Sebastian dealt with were unsavory, but maybe this one was more decent than some. In the safety of her master’s study his silent gaze upon her was unsettling, as was the woodsy masculine smell of him. Trying not to show how unnerving the stranger’s stare was, she met Sebastian’s eyes and silently asked what was going on. Sebastian looked surprised by the stranger’s reaction to her, but he masked it well. “Krista, this is my nephew, Jasper , but knowledge of that doesn’t leave this room. This beautiful young lady is Zarsha. Could you take care of her and see that she gets plenty to eat?” Krista noticed the little girl by the tall man’s side
REBIRTH OF A WARRIOR Chapter 45
“It was a trap?”“Yes, it was. Most disturbing was who was involved in the deception. The Zoarinians have a secretive sect in their higher ranks of hierarchy that oversee the most intimate affairs of the empire, including the actions and private lives of the governors themselves. They are very cunning and, I have been told, quite evil.”Interrupting him I said, “I think I know who you’re talking about. Are there many of them?”“Nobody knows, but whenever they are involved, it’s serious business. I have kept a low profile throughout most of my spying career, ever careful to never reveal too much at any one time as to my involvement in the spying community. But of late, I’ve had to take some risks, which men of their cunning could possibly piece together given enough time.”“It would then seem to me a good idea for you to get out before they do find you out!” I said, not understanding his reticence against leaving.Sebastian looked up at me, “Better that I stay and deflect the attention