Mystic Rising

by J L Lawrence

  Rowena—Rowena is a Council member, and she is a former Mystic and over a thousand years old. Rowena has become weary and ready to leave this time and place. Everyone knows she was ready to step down and spend time with her husband, when Cassius was born as the next Mystic. Unfortunately, Rowena’s spouse died in the battle. Now, she continues to serve.

  Micah—Council Seer. He believed that he was going to be proclaimed the next Guardian, so he tends to be jealous of Xander. He has a crush on Kate that is hindering some of his abilities to see and interpret his visions accurately.

  Marcus—Marcus is the Council leader, or may also be called the Alpha since the demons use Omega to denote their leader. He took over when his predecessor died in the last Rising. He is a wizard with extraordinary power. No one knows spells and potions better than him.

  Tristan—Leader of the Gliders and Council Member. He is in charge of all warriors. Tristan has warriors searching constantly for rogues. Some rogues are given a chance for redemption, but most are given a death sentence depending on the severity of their crimes. Other offenses include exposing magic to humans. He carries out whatever justice is needed.

  Camilla—Council Member. She was once a human witch. She fought on the night of the last Rising with courage and selflessness, even though humans had never been allowed on the battlefield. She saved Marcus’ wife, when she was trying to protect Marcus from a demon at his back. Camilla picked up a sword dropped by a fallen warrior and sliced off the demon’s head. Camilla was mortally wounded and was ready to die. Then she was healed, and the mark of the Council placed on her hand.

  Pam—Mother of Xander and Xavier. Wife of Marcus. She is a healer and very good with spells.

  Roxy—Powerful Seer. She hates anything human and Gregory even more. Her nastiness is evident from her first meeting with Kate. Over time, you find out more of her story and the broken heart that led to her bitterness. Her visions are the key to finding the traitor and saving the realm.

  Zane—Leader of the Shadow Warriors. Shadow Warriors are a rare and extremely powerful species and excellent at killing demons. They used to be guardians to humans. Their last leader made a grave error in judgment and locked them in the Shadow World. As their current leader, Zane, has not been able to find a way to get back to any of the other realms.

  Storm—Zane’s brother and second in command. His strength is building weapons that might be able to help during the Rising. He has a long history with Nikki and resents that she cut him out of her life.

  Chris—A member of Kate’s FBI team. His detective and observation skills are unsurpassed which makes it difficult to adjust his memories. He has a slight crush on Kate but he’s too valuable, so she just ignores it.

  Mike—A member of Kate’s FBI team. His specialty is technology. He can hack any system or break any code. He’s a family man at heart that refuses to let his team down.

  Teri—A member of Kate’s FBI team. She’s tough and intelligent. A former kickboxing champion, she can hold her own in a fight. She has a hidden relationship with Randy.

  Randy—A member of Kate’s FBI team. He’s a former military operative and specialized in weapons. He went on the missions that no one ever talks about. He still suffers from PTSD but stays focused on the job. He’s been secretly dating Teri and she’s been helping him work through his problems.

  Jeff—Close friend to Xander. He took over all of Xander’s responsibilities after he had to go in search of the Mystic. He has been running the training facility and working on recruitment as well as maintaining justice for the Council. He’s married to Jane.

  Jane—Close friend to Camilla and Montgomery family. She took over all of Camilla’s human coven responsibilities after Xander had to go in search of the Mystic. She has been running the wiccan training facility and working on recruitment as well as helping Jeff to maintain justice for the Council. She’s married to Jeff.

  Marco—Close friends of Xander and Xavier. He is a Glider and mated to Illianna. After the brother’s left the Meadows, he helped keep the training facility going and assisted Tristan with Rogues.

  Illianna—Close friends of Xander and Xavier. She is a Glider and mated to Marco. After the brother’s left the Meadows, she helped keep the training facility going and assisted Pam with healing and spells. She also assisted with training female warriors.

  Joseph—Friend of Xander and Xavier. They maintain a house in the human realm and help protect any magical being including the Mystic when she was traveling to the Meadows. Married to Lucia.

  Lucia—Friend of Xander and Xavier. They maintain a house in the human realm and help protect any magical being including the Mystic when she was traveling to the Meadows. Married to Joseph.

  Ace—Leader of the Rogues in the New Orleans district. He hates the Council because he feels that they were ostracized for differing views. His pack has been dealing with a new vampire threat since all the gliders left for the Meadows. Kate must negate the threat and encourage him and his pack to join her in the battle.

  Nate—New Orleans Police Officer. His parents were killed by demons in Australia several years ago. Rowena happened to be visiting at the time. She didn’t arrive in time to save them, but she saved him. She made him a deal. He could keep his memory and move to New Orleans to join the police academy. Or she would erase everything. It was a chance for a normal life, but he couldn’t accept it. He accepted her offer to come here. Xander and Gregory helped him find a place to live and join the academy.

  Cassius—Previous Mystic and Ancestor of Kate. He won but died during his battle and tried to prevent Kate from fighting. He left clues and visions for her to help her gain knowledge and power, so she can have a different fate from him.

  Guinevere—Wife of Cassius and Powerful Seer. She died before Cassius’ battle but knew it was coming. They made plans to hide their future generations to protect them.

  Felicity—Daughter of Cassius and Guinevere. Felicity’s bloodline became resentful of the past and hiding who they really were. Eventually dark magic seeped into her descendants. Not all were dark, but there were a few, including Lily’s grandmother. Felicity’s bloodline was responsible for creating the love spell that could block someone even from their intended mate.

  Trinity—Daughter of Cassius and Guinevere. Ancestor of Kate. Trinity’s descendants created the antidote to the love spell. It became a huge battle between the two lines. Trinity’s line worried that the potion would eventually be used against them to destroy their lineage. So they decided to create a spell to literally infuse the antidote into their DNA. No descendant of Trinity’s would ever feel the full effects.

  Daria—She works with other Seekers when they want to integrate back into regular society which usually means the Human Realm since they aren’t welcome in the Meadows. The isolation is extreme and by nature they are very social creatures. Daria was the first to choose a different life and became adept at hiding and controlling her powers. She now shares her new abilities with those wanting to escape. She still loves Drake with all her heart but can’t be trapped underground.

  Drake—Leader of the Seeker Army. Drake has spent his time outside the walls of the hidden city and trained to be a military commander. Xander’s family helped him and kept his presence a secret. He and Maximus (deceased brother of Xander) had been really good friends before the last Rising. He’d made sure Drake had all the skills he needed to survive. He still loves Daria but doesn’t agree with her choices.

  Cian—Leader of the Seekers, a hidden race of people. Seekers absorb knowledge from everything around them, but their inventions led to issues during the last Rising. Not wanting censorship from the Council, they created a hidden city deep with the ocean. Cian has reorganized the Seekers and supports Daria’s theory that his people may need to spend time outside of seclusion and rejoin society.

  Serena—Cian’s wife. She agrees that it’s time for a new direction and decides to follow the Mystic. After Kate rescues their city, Serena stays
behind to reestablish order for their people but will join them to fight at the Rising.

  Annalisse—Queen of the Faery Realm. She has been their ruler for over a thousand years and misses the early attacks on her people because she’s never had to fight before. She’s suspicious of Kate at first, but eventually pledges her allegiance.

  Lily—Deceased mate of Xavier. Her insecurity led to her deal with a demon and ultimately her death. She was a descendent of Felicity’s bloodline.

  Cillian—Ancient wizard and archivist for the magical realms. He and other magical entities created a realm based solely on maintaining knowledge to assist future Mystics. He assists Kate during her quest in Ireland.

  Angora—Evil witch who took advantage of the Shadow Warriors during the last Rising. Then she held Cillian and the others hostage, so she could become the supreme ruler of the world. Her evil acts led to the curse preventing the Shadow Warriors from leaving their realm.

  Ancestors—Previous ancient Mystics who created a separate dimension to provide guidance to all future Mystics. They help determine whether the light will be bestowed during the Rising. Very few are asked to join them.

  Fury or Furyik—Wizard, demon, and former friend of Xander and Xavier. He let the dark powers inside him take over and became hunted by the Council. Xander and Xavier were sent to serve justice. They were not able to kill him but trapped him in inside the Hell Realm. He was able to escape but stayed under Lucian’s thumb. He’s out to destroy one of the brothers and break the spell.

  Braxus—Omega for the Hell Realm. He’s been using new tactics to shake the Mystic and change the outcome of the Rising. His goal is to weaken her however he can. He’s very sure that he can defeat this Mystic because she was born a human.

  Lucian—Ruler of the Hell Realm. Banished there many wars ago, this became the beginning of the Rising. His only hope of escape is to conquer all the realms and break free. He’s lost hope in his Omega warrior and has begun plotting for a different option. However, killing a Mystic is still his priority.

  Ardan—Leader of the dragons and protector of Serenity. Believes in the forces of good and pledges his allegiance to Kate.

  Minions—Humans that have traded their souls and been awarded supernatural abilities like speed and strength. They are easier to kill than demons, but not to be underestimated. The newer minions are smarter than they have been in the past. Also, more have been created than ever before.

  Shadows—A realm of incredibly gifted warriors that used to mirror the Human Realm. It was full of light and color until their leader created a curse and they were banned from the humans. Now, all emotions are muted, and they can no longer leave their realm to help in the battle. They have always been instrumental to winning the Rising, so Kate is in a race against time to figure out their new role.

  Meadows—A protected magical realm or safe haven for all supernatural beings. It is also the home of the Council and Kate. It was created in the mountains of Montana when there were very few inhabitants. Now it is a separate realm to provide distance from the humans. Nothing evil can enter and there is limited access.

  Human Realm—All humans exist in this realm with very little knowledge of the world around them. Over time, many of the supernatural beings have transitioned into this realm due to the new fascination between humans and fantasy. It provided the perfect cover. However, humans do not know this and the Council goes to great lengths to make sure of this. Humans have never been allowed to fight during the Rising.

  Faery Realm—Home of the faeries, nymphs, elves and other species looking for peace and connected to nature. Their light has been so strong that no evil has been able to exist in their realm but a new darkenss threatens their borders. If they collapse, the power source of the Mystic will be dramatically reduced.

  Serenity—A protected realm of Healers. Neither good or evil can enter without permission with the exception of the Mystic. Their sole purpose is to study the art of healing and provide assistance to those in need. They only leave their realm after the Rising to assist the injured. Healers in this realm do not procreate.

  Hell Realm—The dark realm that is home to the worst demons and Lucian. They were banished to this realm eons ago and their only hope of freedom is winning the Rising. After the last Rising many demons escaped, but the worst ones are eternally bound until a battle is won.

  Acknowledgements

  To my husband and three children who refused to let me give up even when sacrifices had to be made for me to continue the dream. I’m eternally grateful for your love and support.

  For my Mom, who believed in me every step of the way. She fostered my love of reading and encouraged me to dream big.

  To my friend, Laura, who continues to travel anywhere in the world to help me research and listens to endless hours of plotting. This has been an amazing adventure.

  To my friends and fellow writers, Jeanne Hardt and Emma Leigh Reed, who continue to inspire me and encourage me to begin new projects. They wouldn’t let me give up, and I wouldn’t have completed the series without their help.

  To my editor, Alicia, who showed me the way to bring characters to life and yet stay true to my own writing style.

  To my additional editor, Jeanne Hardt, words are not enough to express how grateful I am for her belief in my story and in me.

  Lastly, I want to thank all my readers, family, and friends for their continuous support on this long journey. I hope you will join me for the next series coming soon.

  About the Author

  J. L. Lawrence lives near Nashville, Tennessee with her family including three rambunctious children. She loves reading and exploring new places. Her imagination has always provided her greatest adventures. So, she finally decided to capture some of the stories on paper to create the Mystic Series. Please explore the website and check out her Facebook and Instagram.

  authorjllawrence.com