The Sentinel's Reign

by Suzanne Rogerson

  The Sentinel’s Reign

  Silent Sea Chronicles - Book 2

  By

  Suzanne Rogerson

  Copyright 2018 Suzanne Rogerson

  All rights reserved

  No reproduction without permission.

  The right of Suzanne Rogerson to be identified as the author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the Copyright, Design and Patents Act 1988.

  Table of Contents

  Prologue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Dear Reader

  Also by the author

  Acknowledgements

  Visions of Zarua excerpt

  Author Profile

  Prologue

  Twenty years ago...

  ‘Hello, Callisa.’

  The little girl stopped playing with her doll and looked up at the red-haired woman standing outside the gate.

  ‘That’s a pretty doll.’

  The girl hugged the doll tightly against her chest and stroked the flower sewn on its dress.

  ‘Has your doll got a name?’

  Callisa sucked her lip and considered the question as she studied the woman, not sure if she should answer her.

  ‘I bet I can guess her name. Is it Dolly?’

  Callisa giggled and shook her head, twirling her finger through the doll’s woollen black hair.

  ‘Is it Ebony?’

  The girl shook her head again.

  ‘I know, it’s Raven, isn’t it?’

  Callisa loosened her hold on the doll and pouted. ‘How did you know?’

  ‘I know a lot of things, the same as I know you’re special.’

  ‘Mummy says I am.’

  ‘Your mummy’s right.’ The woman smiled and rubbed her belly.

  ‘You have a big belly,’ Callisa said and then watched the woman, worried she would get angry.

  Instead the red-haired woman laughed. The sound was musical and her eyes crinkled up at the corners. ‘That’s my baby. I’m going to have a little girl.’

  Callisa tilted her head to the side and studied the woman’s belly before closing her eyes and concentrating hard. ‘I can hear her heart beating.’

  The woman nodded. ‘Come and say hello to Tei.’

  Callisa got to her feet and approached the gate, her doll discarded in the dirt. She reached out and pressed her hand to the woman’s warm belly. ‘The baby moved.’

  ‘She’s saying hello to you.’

  Callisa kept her hand on the baby, feeling a foot kick against her.

  ‘You’re going to be friends one day.’

  ‘Are we?’

  ‘Oh yes, but not for a long time. Now I need to tell you something important, Callisa. Something only you and your mummy and daddy can know.’

  ‘A secret?’ She looked up at the woman, having to squint as a shaft of sunlight blinded her. ‘I like secrets.’

  ‘You have an important job to do, Callisa. One day Kalaya will need your help.’

  ‘The island is my friend.’

  ‘The island is a friend to all of us, but not everyone understands its magic.’

  ‘Mummy and Daddy don’t see it.’

  ‘But they know you do and that’s what matters. They’ll keep you safe here, safe from everyone.’

  ‘Mummy said a spirit visited her the day I was born and told her I was a child of magic.’

  The woman ran her hand down Callisa’s black hair. ‘The spirit was right. You’re a precious child, and they can’t have you until it’s time.’

  The woman’s eyes filled with tears, but she smiled them away.

  ‘Why are you sad?’

  ‘I’m not sad, I’m happy.’ She took hold of Callisa’s hand. ‘I know you and Tei will save the magic.’

  ‘People don’t like magic.’

  The woman nodded, her long red hair drifting around her shoulders in the breeze. ‘But it won’t be like that forever. Until then, you have to be very careful who you trust.’ She squeezed her eyes shut and gasped. Then she looked at the trees in the distance before turning back to Callisa. ‘One day bad men will come to take you away, but you must stay here. You’ll be safe. Tei will come and together you’ll make things right.’

  Her skin had gone pale and she gripped Callisa’s hand tightly. Callisa tried to pull away, but the woman held her as she gazed at the treeline.

  The woman relaxed her hold and smiled away the fear fluttering in Callisa’s chest.

  She tried to be brave and chewed at her nail, still a little bit scared by the woman’s words.

  ‘Tei will come for you and keep you safe, I promise.’ She brushed a lock of hair behind Callisa’s ear and winked at her. ‘You’ll both grow up to be special young women.’

  The baby kicked again and the woman smiled down at her bump. ‘See, Tei’s agreeing with me.’

  ‘Callisa, come inside and wash your hands. It’s dinner time,’ her mother called from inside the house.

  ‘I have to go.’ Callisa put her hand to the spot where the baby had kicked and felt the tiny push of a foot. ‘Goodbye, Tei. See you again one day.’

  She waved to the red-haired woman and dashed towards the cottage. When she reached the doorway, she stopped and turned back. The woman was still watching her, with her hand resting on her belly.

  Callisa ran back to her, swooping up the doll as she passed. ‘This is for Tei.’

  The woman hugged the doll to her chest. ‘Goodbye, Callisa.’

  Callisa waved and ran inside without looking back.

  Chapter One

  The wind whipped at Tei’s cloak. She gathered it around her body and held it close, but the feel of her father’s magic was gone. All the magic had gone.

  She opened her spirit to the island and felt the stark emptiness surrounding her. She turned and scanned the horizon in every direction. Nothing but dust and broken mountains stretched into the distance. Her soul ached to connect with another living being, but there was no one. Kalaya was a dead husk - a barren, dust-covered shell.

  She screamed, her voice echoing in the nothingness. She looked down at herself; her boots were worn to scraps, her hands were thin and frail, the cloak threadbare and faded. Her body was wasting away but, despite her emaciated state, she knew death would be a long time coming.

  Something on the ground caught her attention. Her dragging footprints covered the earth in every direction, criss-crossing the terrain in her never ceasing search for life...

  Tei sat up in bed and glanced at the familiar interior of her dorm room. Her only dress lay discarded on the floor and her father’s cloak hung from a hook on the wall, still as pristine as the day he’d given it to her. Her hair was damp with sweat against her neck and her h
ead pounded from drinking too much cider. The evening’s celebrations had been a release, but now the dream images marred the happiness of Callisa’s initiation ceremony.

  Tei wondered why she’d had the nightmare at all when the new Sentinel had already connected with the island. They’d all witnessed her restore the magic; but more than that, she’d restored hope.

  Deciding the dream was just a residue of the past, she untangled herself from the covers and got up from the bed. But she couldn’t shake the feeling of foreboding as she washed her face and dressed in her usual travel attire. She hung up the dress she’d worn the previous evening, pulled her father’s cloak around her shoulders, and, invoking the concealing spell, she slipped from the room.

  There were few exiles in the valley to hide from; she guessed most would still be sleeping off their merriment.

  She spotted Conall whistling to himself as he headed up to the stables. They’d shared a dance last night, which involved continually stepping on each other’s toes and agreeing they were better suited to riding horses. She smiled at the memory. Conall seemed so happy and settled at Turrak, and his parents were becoming a part of the community too. She was glad to have helped rescue them, but there were still many families out in Kalaya who needed help. She thought of Brogan, relieved there was someone on the exiles’ side within the Assembly.

  Tei ambled along, not really focusing on her destination. She ended up at the orchard and sat with her back resting against her favourite cherry tree. The cool mountain air filled her with calm and eased the muzzy effects of the cider.

  She hummed a song from the night before, a jolly tune played on the lute and whistle.

  Callisa’s words repeated in her thoughts. ‘I will never be Callisa the friend.’

  Tei ran a hand through her hair and tugged at the knots caused by her restless sleep. Callisa had certainly made a point of proving her words; they’d barely shared a glance all evening.

  Tei picked a Turrak daisy and sniffed the small, sweet-scented bloom. She thought of Garrick handing her the bunch of flowers all those months ago. An image of his sheepish grin and warm blue eyes formed in her mind. She remembered his huge shoulders, always ready to bear the burden of her pain, and, without further prompting, Tei closed her eyes and reached out to him.

  The grey landscape of the Astral Plane greeted her; it hadn’t altered with the new Sentinel’s arrival. Wispy mists whipped around her, contrasted against the whiter hues of the trees. She travelled deeper into the misty landscape and called out to her friend.

  Garrick arrived, his spirit materialising in the ether.

  She ran to him and embraced his spirit and it was such a relief to feel him hug her back. Tei held on longer than necessary, and sighed against his chest.

  Garrick gave her an extra squeeze before he pulled away. He didn’t ask her what was wrong, and they drifted through the astral orchard in comfortable silence.

  Eventually, Garrick spoke. ‘The island has a different ambience today, doesn’t it?’

  Tei raised her eyebrows at his uncharacteristic words. He grinned at her and poked out his tongue.

  Tei laughed, feeling her stress drain away. ‘I suppose you’re right, but it’ll take time for Callisa’s connection to the magic to repair all the damage of the past.’

  ‘How is our new Sentinel?’

  Tei shrugged. ‘We didn’t get a chance to talk at the celebrations, but I’ll try and see her later.’

  ‘Things have been quiet here since the initiation yesterday; the Soul Eater must have hidden away to lick its wounds.’

  ‘I hope they fester and destroy it.’

  Garrick laughed. ‘We can only hope.’

  They stopped by the cherry tree where her body sat propped up against the trunk, inert and asleep to any who stumbled across her. Their spirits hovered over the daisies before moving on, their spectral images side by side.

  ‘I missed you at the celebrations,’ Tei said quietly, remembering how alone she’d been without her friends. Mara had not stayed long, feigning a headache.

  ‘I'm always here for you, Tei,’ Garrick said gently. ‘Think of this as another one of my missions.’

  ‘I know, but I miss you... I miss this.’ She waved her arm to take in the scene. ‘Whose shoulder can I cry on now?’

  ‘There are plenty of people who would be your friend if you let them.’

  ‘No. When they look at me they only see the Confidante.’

  ‘And you are the Confidante; it’s time to believe in yourself.’

  She looked at the ground and allowed a few minutes to pass in silence. Finally, she glanced at Garrick; he was so self-assured and dependable, even death couldn’t change that. ‘What do you two do here when you don’t have spirits to help?’

  ‘We try to keep busy, but it’s lonely here too with nothing but ghosts and fleeting spirits for company. Rike pines after Mara and I can’t help him. What is there to say that can make his situation any better?’

  Tei hugged Garrick again. He felt so real and full of life and energy, and for a moment, emotions choked her.

  ‘I wish you two were still alive, Garrick, with all my heart. But Callisa couldn't have chosen better Spirit Guides.’

  As he grinned, some of the old Garrick shone through. ‘I’ll always be a protector; I’ll protect the Sentinel any way I can.’

  Tei remembered a drunken Hafender confiding in her how his best men were carrying on the work of the exiles in the Astral Plane and how proud he was of them. Tei stretched up and kissed Garrick’s cheek. ‘We all feel safer with you here. Thank you.’

  She left Garrick blushing as she returned to her body. Time to face up to being the Confidante, she thought as she flicked off her hood and headed back to civilisation.

  ***

  ‘You don’t have long here, son,’ Fynnock repeated.

  Farrell stared at the apparition of his father. ‘What do you mean? What’s going on? Am I dead?’

  ‘No, you’re in the astral world, caught between life and death.’

  Farrell looked around; the stars were gone, there was just a grey landscape of nothingness. He could feel his spirit being tugged this way and that, as though invisible forces were pulling at him. ‘What’s happening to me?’

  ‘Your body is calling you back, but your spirit is drawn to stay here.’

  ‘How is that possible?’

  His father smiled, looking just like he used to when he was about to impart some great truth or knowledge. ‘You have much to learn about your magic, son. One day I hope to find the way to reach you again.’

  ‘But how can I even see you now? You’ve been dead two years, I buried you.’

  Commander Fynnock smiled and his face lit up. ‘I’m dead and gone, but my spirit lives on to watch over our people.’ His father lay his hands on Farrell’s shoulders. ‘There’s so much we didn’t know; so much I learnt when it was too late.’

  ‘I don’t understand.’

  ‘When we came to Stone Haven we were filled with fear. We didn’t understand our own magic. I should never have denied you the gift; forgive my interference and my cowardice.’

  Farrell thought about Fynn and his unborn son, and knew he’d do anything to keep them safe. ‘There’s nothing to forgive, you were protecting me.’

  His father’s face relaxed and Farrell realised he’d been suffering the guilt of his actions all these years.

  ‘My magic isn’t gone...’

  ‘I know, and I’m thankful my efforts failed.’

  ‘I’ve missed you.’ Farrell hugged his father, something they hadn’t done enough when he’d been alive. It felt good, even if this was just a dream and he was already dead. ‘I never was good enough to step into your shoes.’

  Fynnock patted his son’s shoulders, and then held him at arm’s length. ‘No, you’re a better commander than I ever was. You have the courage not to deny your heritage. People need to embrace the past and the magic. The Arconian people can be great aga
in. Stone Haven can still be the home we always wanted.’

  Farrell thought about their plans to sail to Kalaya. What would happen now? What about Leila and the children?

  ‘It’s too late.’ He looked at the transparent image of his hand, and then at the grey fog. A heaviness surrounded him, and he felt woozy, as though he was slipping away.

  His father shook his head. ‘It’s not your time, Farrell. You need to go back. You’re needed there, to lead our people.’ Fynnock squeezed his shoulders. ‘Your body needs you to go back now. I wish we had more time; I have so much to teach you.’

  His father released his hold and Farrell toppled backwards. ‘Wait, what do I do?’

  His father’s image faded. ‘Don’t trust...’ He was gone, his words disappearing with him.

  Farrell fought down panic as blackness seized him and then cleared. He realised he was no longer in the misty realm. He was in his bedroom, somehow looking down at his body in bed. His face looked pale and slack; he looked dead.

  Leila sat beside him, holding his hand. He wanted to reach out to her and tell her he was alright, but he couldn’t get back. The panic returned and he flailed uselessly in the air.

  He realised Allisus was in the room too, talking quietly with Fynn. Farrell felt his heart ache as he watched his son, looking the calmest of them all.

  Fynn glanced up at him and a jolt passed through Farrell as if they were seeing each other.

  ‘Daddy’s come back, Mummy. He’s not lost anymore.’

  Leila stifled a sob and Allisus quickly led Fynn from the room. Leila watched her son leave and then collapsed against Farrell’s chest and wept.

  He called to her, his voice breaking with emotion as he strained desperately to hold her and stop her tears.

  Farrell, you need to relax, his Kalayan contact said in his head. You’re the only obstacle stopping yourself from returning to your family.

  I don’t know how to get back. Despair welled up inside him.

  I will help you. Calm your thoughts and you’ll find the link.

  Farrell turned his thoughts inward and attuned himself to his body. He imagined the steady beat of his heart, the weighted feel of his spirit and the invisible link stretching towards him, pulling him back to his body. He remembered the sharp pain of the blades slicing his arm and stabbing him in the back, and then seeing Leila as his consciousness faded. He turned to his Kalayan contact, suddenly remembering. You warned me, you saved my life.