Emerald Chronicles

James Paoloni

Description

Far away from Earth, beyond even Andromeda, lies the planet of Gemstania, with its utopic society of practical justice. Here the people wield the powers of the natural and unnatural elements, acting as the peacekeepers of the universe. On Gemstania, it is a time of great joy, as the Crystal Prince Emerald, the youngest of the royal family, prepares to be initiated in the ancient art of emerald energy. However, on the eve of the celebrations, the planet is assaulted by the fleet of the Dark Warrior Vitrolax, and the prince is forced to flee. Now orphaned and abandoned on a strange and remote planet, how will Emerald negotiate both the horrors of the past and the future challenges before him?

Sujets

• Fantasy (canción de Mariah Carey)
• Fantasy

Informations

• Publié par: Austin Macauley Publishers
• Date de parution: 29 mars 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781528956826
• Langue: English

Extrait

The Emerald Chronicles
Book 1: Energy
James Paoloni
Austin Macauley Publishers
2019-03-29
The Emerald Chronicles About the Author Dedication Copyright Information Acknowledgements Chapter 1: Subjugation Chapter 2: Impact Chapter 3: Assimilation Chapter 4: Emergence Chapter 5: Lividity Chapter 6: Vengeance Chapter 7: New Revelations Chapter 8: Unidentified
About the Author
Born and raised in Sydney, Australia, James has always revelled in the expression of his imagination – as a singer, music composer and writer. In his first novel, he dives headlong into fantasy and sci-fi with tales of loss and passion and change, from distant planets to parallel universes, powerful beings to distraught lovers. James hopes his readers enjoy the fantastical settings and also relate to the characters and their situations.
Dedication
To Yvonne and Allen
Copyright Information
Copyright © James Paoloni (2019)
The right of James Paoloni to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by him in accordance with section 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior permission of the publishers.
Any person who commits any unauthorised act in relation to this publication may be liable to criminal prosecution and civil claims for damages.
A CIP catalogue record for this title is available from the British Library.
ISBN 9781528900461 (Paperback)
ISBN 9781528900478 (Hardback)
ISBN 9781528900485 (Kindle e-book)
ISBN 9781528956826 (ePub e-book)
www.austinmacauley.com
First Published (2019)
Austin Macauley Publishers Ltd
25 Canada Square
Canary Wharf
London
E14 5LQ
Acknowledgements
To my parents, for always having faith in me and helping me to make this first publishing venture possible, I am forever grateful. To my multitude of friends, for supporting my writing even in the face of adversity; you always had my back and sometimes helped me out by reading early drafts or talking to people within the same line of work. To my teachers, for always being willing to read and giving advice about my novels. You were my strongest motivators and supporters for all my crazy ideas and ventures, and for that, I thank you.
Chapter 1: Subjugation
Earth: the Green Planet. So young, so innocent, so naive. In our schooling, we learnt much about it: vast continents, expansive seas and abundant life forms. I always thought it so incredible how much this small rock had achieved in 4.4 billion years. Little did I realise my later connection towards it.
In a faraway galaxy, beyond Andromeda, beyond Cyrene, beyond the Philemon Cascade, lies Gemstania, my home planet. It was a unique planetary phenomenon: estimated to be 7 billion years old, distantly orbiting a massive star, and holding a rectangular prismatic structure. No scientist would’ve conjectured life on its surface. Clearly, they were proven wrong.
And so Gemstania flourished: the unique planetary biomes formed, with roaring oceans, searing lava flows, rocky earth, blooming plants, and even whispering plains. From primitive times to my own, it had turned tranquil, turned powerful, plentiful in species and races, which, of course, included my own.
Each race had control over specific elements. The Rubefecians, fire; the Jethestras, metal; the Topasirozarens, plasma and earth; the Amethevitras, psychic power and spirits and darkness; the Sappherisens, air and water and ice; and the Jadelfiers, plants and organic toxins.
I, on the other hand, belonged to another race, one that exceeded all others (only in power, we weren’t arrogant): the Emerald Royal Family. This small group was not only assigned rule of the planet – without protest, mind you – but could also control all elements, including light and the mysterious pure emerald energy. According to legend, the first had simply appeared out of nowhere, the last of the races; and when met with assault from the people (it was a different time), he simply blocked it all. Yes, Peace and Prosper were truly granting us favour; but nothing is guaranteed to stay the same, is it?
Not far from Gemstania, there loomed a large spacecraft; but it was no ordinary ship, no. It was the battleship of the legendary Vitrolax, dark leader of the planet Vidraxis. Legends told of him as a skilled swordsman, who destroyed Vidraxis in untamed fury, and then vanished into the cosmos, seeking to alter Fate; but no one thought that he existed, lest would return.
On the spacious bridge of the cosmic brigand, he resided in his command console at the back. His dark matter body rippled like a heartbeat, his triangular golden eyes flickered across the room, and his clawed right hand cradled his left, sheathed in metal. His mythical sword leaned against the nearby wall, wrapped in his purple cloak.
One of the pilots turned to face him and reported, “Gemstania inbound, Vitrolax.”
His eyes glinted towards the shade. “Are we within range?”
“Affirmative,” the pilot replied.
Vitrolax rose from his seat and walked towards his sheathed weapon. “Activate the system. We descend in six minutes.”
The pilot returned to his console. “Yes, my lord.”
Vitrolax put his cloak on and stroked the sword’s flat edge with steely claws. “Soon, Fate will seal her thread. Be prepared, Prince Emerald; for Peace will soon depart, and she won’t be back for a long, long time.”

* * *
At the time, I was stationed in my private chamber, preparing for the day-long celebrations. It was my birthday, the mark of a new stage in my life. I would finally learn to harness emerald energy, and I only had to wait 14 years. It was about time. I would be the final member to master it.
I wore my standard royal robes, accompanied by a long flowing cape, draped around my broad shoulders. Mother had let me keep my hair spiky, but that was it. She’d insisted that my diamond-shaped eyes be outlined and my emerald shined.
I didn’t consider it that important. Every Gemstanian had a gemstone in their forehead. Only gemstone quality and shape differentiated us.
The Rubefecian triangular ruby, the Jethestran tear-shaped jet, the Topasirozaren oval topaz, the Amethevitran circular amethyst, the Sappherisen square sapphire and the Jadelfier spiral jade.
The Emerald Royal Family’s gem was diamond-shaped; a ‘third eye’, it was called in older times. They considered it a mental eye, watching over the universe and its resident planets. Me; I only considered it variation on a common trait.
There was only one part of those gems that interested me: the insignias. These inscriptions were unique to each Gemstanian, patterns and word combinations interweaved from the original ancestors. This inherited quality was so fascinating to me, with their intricacies and rune-like qualities. When these celebrations ended, I planned to profile these insignias and use them to trace back our nation’s history. I could maybe even discover the phylogeny of our race’s divergence.
As I was readjusting my cape, Emerina barged through the door. A Royal Emerald, and my elder sister. She was the busiest in the family, surprisingly, and assisted Father significantly throughout the palace.
“Brother,” she said, her breaths heavy, “I bear bad news. We are under attack. The Amethevitras are marching towards the palace.”
I jolted. “A revolution? What happened?”
“Calm down, brother, it’s not a revolution. One of our observatories spotted a battleship in orbit. We believe it to be the force behind this assault.”
As calmly as I could muster, I asked curiously, “Did they provide a description of this ship?”
“Yes,” she replied, and her eyes widened. “Purple-black appearance, emblem of a triangular golden eye.”
The information struck me like the mason’s hammer. “But that’s impossible. He’s just a legend.”
“Or so we all thought, brother.”
I had no time to lose. I flew out the door, weaving through the winding maze of halls, like rushing water through fresh pipes, and charged towards the throne room.
Mother and Father were there, releasing messenger orbs through the large windows. They were also dressed in their royal regalia, surprised to see me.
I approached my father. “I presume you’ve heard.”
My father nodded. “That I have, son. You’ve been informed as well, I see.”
“Indeed,” I replied. “But that can’t be possible. He’s a myth. He is a myth, right?”
Father turned to me. “All evidence to the contrary: he’s more than just that.”
I reported. “I heard news of the Amethevitras attacking. Do we know why?”
Father quickly replied. “Low-level mind control. The Amethevitras had always focused on understanding the powers he had held during the thriving of Vidraxis; unfortunately, the price of that made them more vulnerable. He used an unknown form of darkness to command them.”
I couldn’t believe it. I wouldn’t believe it. “Why is he attacking? What could he possibly want?”
Before my father could reply, the castle walls rumbled. Small stones fell like hail from the ceiling, and some of the windows shattered. I had no idea what struck the palace, but now wasn’t the time to worry about it.
I gritted my teeth. Cold calmness had been consumed by hot anger. “That bastard! He destroys our home, levels our people’s homes, and probably has his sights set on the entire planet! I won’t stand idly by and take it! I’ll fly up there and kill him myself!”
But before I could, Father grabbed me. “Don’t do that, Emerald. You cannot defeat him; and if he kills you, it will be his victory.”
I looked at him, perplexed. “What do you mean? I cannot defeat him? He’ll succeed if I die? I am an Emerald, aren’t I?”
“There’s no time now,” Father said calmly, “all will be made clear in the future. Now go, follow your mother; I’ll handle Vitrolax.”
I landed in front of him. “If you have time to handle him, then you have time