Children of Magick

Benjamin Towe

Description

Fiction; Fantasy; Children of Magick; Magic; Benjamin Towe; Elves; Sorcerers; Dragons; Action; Adventure
Children of Magick chronicles deeds of sorcerers, elves, and dragons in ancient Donothor. The sorcerer Morlecainen and his Dark Elf princess mate welcome twin daughters. Chalar shares her father’s red hair whilst Theandra bears her mother’s dark features. Magick touches the sisters. The sorcerer’s ambition and unwonted effects of Magick connect two worlds and embroil them in conflict. The sorcerer surreptitiously attains a seemingly insurmountable weapon. The weapon’s creators seek its return. Fragile alliances form and splinter. Deception breeds mistrust. The sorcerer’s daughters traverse different paths and find love. Both suffer the consequences of their father’s misdeeds. All the while the mysterious spirit of the Orb of Dark Knowledge invades dreams, stirs conflict, and serves its own agenda. Will Magick serve of doom its children?

Sujets

• Fantastique
• Epic Fantasy
• Epic
• Fiction
• Fantasy

Informations

• Publié par: AuthorHouse
• Date de parution: 29 janvier 2023
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781728378817
• Langue: English

Extrait

Children of Magick
a Tale of Sorcery, Elves, and Dragons
BENJAMIN TOWE


AuthorHouse™
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Bloomington, IN 47403
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© 2023 Benjamin Towe. All rights reserved.
 
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted by any means without the written permission of the author.
 
This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.
 
Published by AuthorHouse 01/25/2023
 
ISBN: 978-1-7283-7883-1 (sc)
ISBN: 978-1-7283-7882-4 (hc)
ISBN: 978-1-7283-7881-7 (e)
 
Library of Congress Control Number: 2023901608
 
 
 
 
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Getty Images are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Getty Images.
 
 
 
Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.
Contents
One
Two
Three
Four
Five
Six
Seven
Eight
Nine
Ten
Eleven
Twelve
Thirttene
Fourteen
Fifteen
Sixteen
Seventeen
Eighteen
Nineteen
Twenty
Twenty-One
Twenty-Two
Twenty-Three
Twenty-Four
Twenty-Five
Twenty-Six
Twenty-Seven
Twenty-Eight
Twenty-Nine
Thirty
Thirty-One
Thirty-Two
Thirty-Three
Thirty-Four
Thirty-Five
Thirty-Six
Thirty-Seven
Thirty-Eight
Thirty-Nine
Forty
Forty-One
Forty-Two
Forty-Three
Forty-Four
Forty-Five

                            Wisps…
                            Threads…
                            Threads of Magick…
                            Threads of fate…
                            Threads of time…
                            Threads connecting worlds…
                            Dreams connecting worlds…
                            Dreams of Magick…
                            Magick connecting dreams…
                            Magick connecting worlds…
                            Dream raiders…
                            Elf pressure…
                            Albtraum…
                            Albträume, elf dreams, nightmares…
                            Dreams…
One
Brilliant flashes of redness thrice filled Donothor’s skies. Ancient writings archived inexplicable redness 3585, 2001, and 2000 years in the past. Deep blueness followed the most ancient episode. Campfire songs and early recorded histories of Gray Elves, Dark Elves, and Black Dragons described the strange occurrences. Balladeers sang of ancient mysteries and legends stemming from the red glow. Songs tied the redness to the legend of the stone dragon and origin of enmity between the Gray and Dark Elves.
The great River Luumic served as the major artery of the lands of Donothor. The mighty river flowed from its source in the mountains north of Lyndyn, traversed northern and central Donothor past the dangerous Misty Forest, and sent its largest tributary meandering northward into the Iron Mountains gap. Wealth awaited those brazen enough to traverse the gap, but many entered the gap and never returned. In southern Donothor the Luumic divided into three branches. At the trifurcation a conurbation not surprisingly named Three Forks grew rapidly into the third largest town in Donothor, only after Lyndyn and the dwarves’ citadel Hillesdale. The easternmost branch extended eastward to Rancide and the Calamitous Forest and defined the upper Lachinor. The impassible middle branch widened south of Three Forks and merged with the marshes of the Lachinor. There was no safe conduit to the depths of the Lachinor. Marshy terrain became ever more treacherous south of the river. The well-known western branch flowed past the dwarves’ Fort Luumic, passed through the dense forests surrounding Knottington, and meandered to the Great Western Sea. The wide expanse of Suregood Forest sat north of the Luumic and extended to the sea.
Most of Donothor remained wild. Lawlessness abounded when one left the civilized areas. Much of the great southern swamp the Lachinor remained unexplored and home to goblins, hobgoblins, black dragons, and communities of elves. Gray Elves lived in the westernmost Lachinor. Dark Elves lived deep in the swamp. Large numbers of black dragons filled the air in the depths of the swamp.
Northern hamlets bound together and established a center of government at Lyndyn. Lyndyn was strategically located on the River Luumic and shielded by Mt. Lyndyn. The Aivendar family spearheaded the efforts in Lyndyn and formed the Rangers of Donothor to provide security and enforce the law. Eigren Aivendar had accepted the title of king and established the house of Aivendar. Recently efforts began to construct a wall around the growing hamlet. Eigren enlarged the donjon and transformed caverns beneath the hamlet to a dungeon to incarcerate the lawless.
East of Lyndyn, the mysterious Priestess Knarra constructed her freehold, the Fane of the Setting Sun. Magick touched Knarra. The ageless Priestess arrived long ago and never revealed whence she came. The Fane of the Setting Sun became a sanctuary for the needy and a source of strength. Knarra had adventured in the east with Prismatic Dragon Taekora. The duo prevailed over many power-hungry barons. Knarra supported the fledgling government at Lyndyn and presented the Aivendars with the priceless Blade of Truth Exeter. The blade became heirloom of the Aivendars and filled the hand of the Captain of the Rangers. Eigren’s son Ordrych served in this capacity. The ranger force under the tutelage of Ordrych Aivendar had become well trained and effective. Ordrych was never without the longsword Exeter and the two melded into a fighting unit. The dwarves’ King Travan presented Ordrych with a set of glorious chainmail fashioned by the finest armorers of the mines beneath Hillesdale. It had scarcely the weight of a cloak but provided great protection.
Barges carried finished goods from Lyndyn to Three Forks and places south including Fort Luumic and communities such as Tindal, Prille, and Kanath. Titanosteers, oxen, and sometimes the strong backs of river men pulled barges upstream. The River Luumic formed a natural barrier to foragers such as the Iron Mountain Giants that inhabited the regions east of the river.
Two
Magick touched the world Sagain. Orders of Dark and Light Sorcery struggled for dominance and fought constantly. Dark Sorcerers entrusted their leadership, treasures, and the ancient Staff of the West Wind to elderly Clysis. The Staff of the West Wind was one of the thirteen Staves of Sagain and called the Staff of Stone. The artifact passed along legendary icons of Sagain, including Rhiann Klarje, Iyaca Vassi, the wanderer Confusious, the head of the order of Dark Sorcerers Boton Klarje-Jhundi, Bijna Torva, Ross Fizer, and finally old Clysis. The rune “W” of the Old Language was etched into the end of the staff. Four sets of symbols in the center of the staff briefly glowed whenever the Staff of the West Wind was employed. These symbols, Ǿ ∞ Ǿ , identified artifacts of Sagain. The relic possessed innate faculties of the spells Comprehend Languages, Stonewall, Stone to Mud, Stone to Flesh, Stone Shape, and Petrifaction. The great staff unpredictably reversed the effects of its actions.
Clysis sought power, wealth, and ultimately survival. Distant twin suns expanded in the sky and parched the lands of Sagain. Dreams troubled the aged Dark Sorcerer. Through his disturbed slumber the old necromancer learned the lost Orb of Dark Knowledge and other powerful artifacts rested in a chest in his archrival’s vault. Conjurations of heretofore unknown powerful spells appeared in his mind. Benefitting from his newfound Magick, the old sorcerer fashioned six Arrows of Slaying with fletching of the tail feathers of the deadly Tuscon, a completely black bird of prey whose bite and talons created mortal wounds. Limited Wish and Permanency Spells completed the unerring deadly arrows. The aged wizard vainly called the projectiles Arrows of Clysis. Casting the high-level spells weakened old Clysis, and he relied more and more on his apprentice, a young thaumaturgist Morlecainen. Ambition and lust for treasure drove Morlecainen. At his mentor’s direction, Morlecainen used two Arrows of Clysis and smote the Head of the Order of Light Sorcerers Kreuseul and his chosen successor Garijane. Morlecainen retrieved an ornate chest from Kreuseul’s vault and returned to his master with the spoils. However, the apprentice failed to attain Kreuseul’s powerful staff and kill the Light Sorcerer’s son.
The bejeweled chest contained a palm-sized orb made of polished glass, a tome with instructions for the legendary Translocation Spell, and importantly a smidgeon of fossilized shypoke eggshells, the material component required for the great Ninth Level Spell. Mastering the Translocation Spell meant escape from Sagain and its ever-threatening suns. Once Clysis possessed the Orb his dreams intensified and filled his fitful attempts at sleep. Clysis repetitively studied the tome. Inexplicable hints from his dreams continued.
Clysis also held a small ornamental box, which was a treasured and symbolic heirloom of Dark Sorcery. Clysis prized the little chest and guarded it dearly