Behind Blaze, the jotnar, red lines now gone from its skin, sighed softly in its sleep.
Dreck wrapped his arms around Blaze from behind in a giant big-brother bear hug. “Hug now!” he said. Blaze didn’t object. She wriggled around, then hugged him right back. It felt good.
“We won,” said Princess Sapphire. She flashed a grin.
“I couldn’t have done it alone,” Blaze said.
“Same goes for me,” said the princess, with a smile. “But don’t you dare tell my father I said that.”
Dreck and Blaze laughed. Suddenly, Blaze felt the tension of battle break. They had won. They had defeated Cernonos. And here they were. Alive.
“Of course, there will be the Freyr to deal with,” said Princess Sapphire.
Blaze looked at her. She wasn’t sure what she meant by that.
“You’ve destroyed his waterfall,” said Princess Sapphire. “They’ll have to rename the town.”
“To Foruk Fell?” asked Dreck.
Blaze groaned. Dreck gave a roar of a laugh, and they turned toward the city gates. It was time to recall the exiles of Foruk’s Falls.
It was time to celebrate.
Chapter 21: Return
“Sire, the portal—it’s opening on its own!”
King Jasper III raced down the hall of the castle after his wizened master magician.
A swirl of white light filled the Crystal Chamber behind the king’s war room and formed into a small tornado of flickering energy.
“Who is it?” King Jasper asked.
“I’m not sure,” said the magician. “It is still too faint to tell.”
“Reach out to it,” commanded the king. “Summon your magic.”
The magician lifted a staff and whispered a spell, speaking to the song of the Goddess that rang through the crystals of the room. In response, the light doubled, tripled in size.
“It’s the Reach!” the king cried. He could see the frozen, jagged horizon inside the portal. His heart nearly exploded. He wanted to hope, but he didn’t dare. Not yet. “It’s the Reach! I can see the peaks.”
Flecks of snow brushed the king’s face as the room swirled with a gust of cold air.
“Keep it open!” King Jasper called.
“I . . . can’t,” said the magician, struggling to keep his staff aloft. “It’s too far away.”
The king could not let it close. There was too much at stake. He would not lose her again. He lifted his scepter and slammed it down on the ground, releasing a flash of pure energy.
His body, sapped of strength, collapsed. They were so close. My daughter. Please let it be my daughter. He propped himself up on one knee.
The portal finally swelled as tall as a human.
Within the tornado of light, a form grew, coalescing into a shining blue silhouette. Then the white light was gone, and in its place stood Princess Sapphire’s sparkling armor.
The master magician fell to one knee.
“You are found!” King Jasper cried. “You are found! My daughter, Princess Sapphire has returned!”
Princess Sapphire stepped out of the place where the white portal had been. King Jasper climbed to his feet and collapsed onto his daughter, wrapping his arms around her shoulders, feeling the chill of her armor as it bit against his cheek.
She removed her helmet and kissed his cheek.
“Hello, King Worrywart,” Princess Sapphire said.
King Jasper looked into her eyes. “My daughter. Tell me, is there hope for the Frostbyte Reach?”
Princess Sapphire just smiled.
King Jasper III grinned through his gushing tears of joy. “How . . . how did you get here?”
“A little luck, and lot of fire.”
***
The bells of Castletown rang through the halls of the citadel and echoed in the streets of the city. Far out in the Fae Wood, the sensitive ears of the elves turned toward the center of the realm.
From the base of the Frostbyte peaks, not far away from where the city of Midway once stood, spring grass spread out across the valley like a sea of green. In its center, a newly constructed tower rose toward the heavens. A lone Ember Mage stood on the parapets, overlooking her domain.
The tower’s tiled roof was red. Its walls were built of glistening alabaster and ivory, with silvery-white metal spires.
Her orc friend stood next to her. They had built it, together—orc and human.
Blaze looked over the waves of grain in the fallow fields on the borders of a derelict village.
Midway.
Inside her mind, Blaze could still hear the words Dreck had spoken so often. “Open your heart. See with your heart.”
She pointed to a clearing near Midway’s edge. “This is where I’ll start my school,” she said. She pointed to a space across the street where Crook-Eye Orcs were already dragging great logs into the village. “And this is where the orphanage will be.”
Dreck smiled his horrible grin. “A town big enough for me to wander in,” he said.
Reaching within herself, Blaze felt for the thing that connected them all. The essence that bound them together.
She spun in a circle and released a burst of white fire.
Rising into the air, she spun faster and faster until at last she lifted her arms and let fly a burst of light so great it was seen from Crystalia Castle’s battlements.
The White Ember Mage’s domain was now Crystalia Castle’s rear guard—a pinnacle of hope.
The dwarves of the Reach now had a chance to stand up to their enemies. And so could all the creatures of Crystalia. They would fight the Dark Consul. They could hold back the darkness.
Princess Sapphire, princess of prophecy, had been found.
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The Forgotten King
Chapter 1: Trouble in the Woods
Treffen Cedarbough crept along the dry streambed, arrow nocked and ready. A young buck browsed the bushes just over the rocky edge, and the growling of Treffen’s stomach threatened to give him away.
Slow and steady. Just like Master Birch always says. Breathe and focus.
A chattering erupted in the trees, and a sudden hailstorm of acorns pelted the deer’s rump and Treffen’s head. The deer darted away into the forest.
Treffen glared at the squirrels. “You little . . . I’m gonna . . .”
Unconcerned, the squirrels leapt from branch to branch, high in a stately oak, their little squeaks sounding like shrill laughter.
Since they had scared away his dinner, they would have to do instead. He raised his bow and loosed an arrow at the fattest one. The nasty creature dodged the arrow, which lodged in the tree’s sturdy trunk.
Looks like another hungry night.
He climbed the tree amid an angry rain of acorns, retrieved his arrow, and examined the stone head for damage. The squirrels squeaked their amusement as he climbed down. That deer would have filled Treffen’s belly for days, and he could have sold the hide to one of the roving traders who traversed the wide dirt roads at the edge of the Fae Wood. With the crowns from that sale, he could have purchased metal arrowheads or fletching feathers. Now he’d have to scrounge for edible tubers in the dirt, and the arrows he’d made for his journey would have to serve another day.
Treffen’s frustration melted away as he padded on through the forest. Golden sun slanted through the trees, and a soft breeze sang the song of rustling leaves. Every season in the Fae Wood had its charm, but spring was especially magical. The youngest sprouts were just bursting from the soil, waving their little leaves around in the joy of the season. Squishy, mushroom-like Kinoko hopped about in the shade of deep green ferns. Even the most hardened warrior couldn’t help but smi
le at their tumbling antics. Treffen inhaled the heady scent of loamy soil and growing things. For a Glimmerdusk Ranger, such were the sounds and scents of home.
But you’re not quite a Ranger yet, are you? The voice in his head held a tinge of Father’s disapproval. It always did.
Two more weeks. That’s all he had left. Since the Rangers had accepted him into their rigorous training, he’d learned everything an elf needed to know for surviving the Fae Wood. Soon he’d join their official ranks and take his place as a Wood guardian, helping lost travelers, caring for the creatures of the forest, and securing the Glade from the ever-encroaching taint of Lordship Downs.
The thought sent a shiver down Treffen’s spine. He’d seen the Downs. His training group had all followed Master Birch to the edge of the Wood where towering sycamores and pines gave way to twisted abominations, slimy leaves, and the sickly-sweet scent of decaying flesh.
“The evil creeps ever outward,” Master Birch had said. “That darkness which dwells in the heart of the Downs is like a climbing ivy, always seeking, always sending out new tendrils to grasp and grow. Only our vigilance keeps the taint at bay.”
Treffen had proved adept at that. While the slow, methodical creeping of a hunt often ended with a hungry Treffen, when it came to a real fight, he excelled. Arrows would fly from his bow faster than he could even think, sailing true to their targets. It was like the Goddess herself guided his hands when he let his mind go in the heat of attack.
And yet you just lost a fight with a squirrel.
Treffen glanced up, checking the sun’s position. His solo circuit of the Fae Wood was almost over. Another two weeks in the forest alone and he’d return to the Glade as a full Glimmerdusk Ranger, the first in his family. Not that anyone in his family had ever aspired to become one.
Let it go. Eat your dinner. That inner voice sounded more like his mother.
He pulled some dry tubers from his pack, knelt next to a large, flat rock, and laid the tubers on the makeshift table for preparation. His blade paused over the roots as a sickly stench drifted past his nostrils. Treffen glanced at the sun again, closing his eyes for a moment. An elf could never be lost in the Fae Wood. Though the Deeproot Tree that dominated the Glade was miles away, all he had to do was reach into his heart to feel Her presence and its location. The great Tree’s roots stretched through all Crystalia such that his feet could never be so far that he couldn’t feel Her life-giving dominion.
He was north of the Tree, east of the Downs, and only a day’s walk from Cross Creek, a small human town on the outskirts of the Wood. The taint of evil shouldn’t be discernible here. But the stench wafted by again, carried by a chilly breeze.
Treffen tucked the tubers into his belt pack, replaced his knife in its sheath, and reached for an arrow.
Darkness flows from the Downs. It was one of the first lessons young Ranger Trainees learned. The evil of the Dark Realm had plenty of other outlets into the once-peaceful country of Crystalia, but here in the Fae Wood, that death smell always came from one place.
He sidled forward, feet making no sound on the dry leaves. The shifting scent led him into the glare of the setting sun. As he padded through the dense underbrush, small creatures skittered past and the comforting symphony of birdsong fell away behind him.
A silent forest is a dangerous forest. Another Ranger saying. His skin prickled as the sun dipped below the horizon, the usual pink of twilight given over to a moody, bruised, purple sky. The scent on the breeze became more rancid, and a small noise ahead stopped Treffen in his tracks. He crouched low, listening.
This shouldn’t be. The evil taint of Lordship Downs shouldn’t be anywhere near this part of the Wood. But the farther he crept, the more he felt it, reaching right through the soil and into his bones.
Gnarled roots snagged his boots as he scooted forward. His heart thudded in his ears, and he held his breath, listening in the silence. Somewhere just to the north. A squishing noise like rotted wood followed by a strangled scream.
Treffen peered around a blackened tree stump.
A human man and woman were struggling to free themselves from brown, twisted vines that were wrapping around them from all directions.
There was only one evil this could possibly be, and the name chilled Treffen’s blood.
King Sprout. Of all the forest creatures that could be tainted by evil, the once-gentle Sprouts became the most dangerous when touched by the Dark Realm.
He drew the machete from his belt and stepped out from behind the tree.
The Sprout wasn’t fully grown yet, but still in the middle of the transformation between the mobile, hopping, knee-high plant and the towering man-eater it would become. The whole change took only minutes, and judging by the thickness of the vines, this one was well on its way. They had to get clear before the final transformation.
Treffen slashed at the vines, peeling them off the woman’s skin. Oozing boils covered her flesh, and she fell to her knees as he chopped away the plant’s tentacles. As soon as she was free, he shoved her away.
“Get away from here!”
The woman scrambled to her feet and stumbled back the way Treffen had come, to the safety of the living forest.
The man was being dragged back toward the center of the Sprout’s grasping arms. Chop and peel. The man’s skin looked worse than the woman’s, and he was growing weaker, barely struggling against the vines. Poisoned. Some fungus must have blown toxic spores onto the couple, leaving them easy prey for the Sprout.
Not today. Treffen ripped the last of the vines from the man’s torso and pushed him out of the Sprout’s reach. The man fell, barely able to crawl.
There was no way Treffen could carry both of the humans, and the woman couldn’t have gotten far. He reached down toward the man, intending to drag him away, but the Sprout wrapped a brown tentacle around his leg and yanked hard, spilling Treffen onto the ground. He chopped at the vines, but more slithered around him. No time. He wrenched his machete arm free and hacked at the grasping tendrils, sliding ever closer to the plant’s center.
A King Sprout’s final transformation was the growth of a huge, toothed pod, a gaping mouth that devoured anything its vines could drag close enough. The plant could take out a whole regiment of Rangers, which weren’t here to help him anyway.
If that mouth was already sprouted, Junior Ranger Treffen Cedarbough was about to become dinner.
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Acknowledgments
Of course I have to start by thanking Adam Glendon Sidwell, my coauthor, mentor, and friend. He took a chance on letting me help with this project, both in regards to drafting out the series, and in letting me help write this final manuscript. It was and is always a pleasure and an honor to collaborate with him.
Next, I want to thank Deke Stella, who let me play around in his world and forgave me when I got all the details wrong in my first couple of drafts, both in regards to my series pitch, and in subsequent drafts of this manuscript. I hope we get a chance to work together again in the future.
I also must thank Emma Hoggan, my favorite editor, and my good friend. She was instrumental in improving my initial drafts of the manuscript, and in improving upon my initial concepts and designs for the series as a whole. Without her improving my notes, concepts, and story beats, this book would have been much weaker overall.
A special word goes out to my wife Kirsta, who supported me in writing this book even when I took time away from her to do it.
Finally, I want to thank you, the reader, who spent time reading not only this book, but also these acknowledgements. I mean, who even does that? Someone pretty awesome is who.
Zachary James Strickland.
About the Authors
Adam Glendon Sidwell
In between books, Adam Glendon Sidwell uses the power of computers to make monsters, robots,
and zombies come to life for blockbuster movies such as Pirates of the Caribbean, King Kong, Pacific Rim, Transformers, and Tron.
After spending countless hours in front of a keyboard meticulously adjusting tentacles, calibrating hydraulics, and brushing monkey fur, he is delighted at the prospect of modifying his creations with the flick of a few deftly placed adjectives. He once lived in New Zealand with the elves, so feels very qualified to write this fantasy series.
Adam also wrote every single word in the EVERTASTER series, the picture book FETCH, and the unfathomable CHUM.
Connect with him at facebook.com/AdamGlendonSidwell
Zachary James
Zachary James is the very creative pen name of Zachary James Strickland. By day, he’s a mild-mannered mortgage specialist, but by night, he’s a mild-mannered author.
Zachary graduated from Brigham Young University in 2017. He currently lives with his beautiful wife and trouble-making cocker spaniel in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Want Adam to come to your school?
Adam Glendon Sidwell has visited hundreds of schools across the country sharing his interactive assemblies and encouraging students to read and write. Adam uses visuals from his career as an animator for blockbuster Hollywood films such as Tron, Pirates of the Caribbean, and Thor to teach kids about writing structure, narrative, and theme. Adam’s assembly is the perfect educational experience for your school. For more information visit: http://www.futurehousepublishing.com/authors/adamglendonsidwell/
Contact [email protected] to book Adam at your school.
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