50 - The Severing of Sorcery
He called upon his inner Wisp twin. One last time.
“I was almost free of you, Master,” said it.
“You were. How’d it feel?”
“How’d it feel to almost have command of this world? Pretty good…”
“Too bad,” Esh said.
Time was slowed almost to halt. Esh walked up to Zygod, whose face was that of astonished horror. Esh used the tip of his sword to position both of the elf’s hands outwards. Then, with a single slice, he cut both off.
“That takes care of his sorcery abilities.”
“That it does,” said It.
“Are there any more sorcery outlets for this one?” asked Esh.
It gave a painful face and said nothing.
“I order you to answer!”
“Yes… his feet,” It said.
Esh pushed Zygod over and cut those off too.
“Kill all the agents while I rest.”
It bowed his head and went to work.
Esh sat down and tried his best to slow down the blood loss. The strange thing was that the pain hadn’t hit him until that moment. His body went rigid as waves of pain ran up his arm and into his brain. He tried his best to keep his nub elevated but the warm blood ran down his arm and into his mouth, making him gag.
“It is done,” said It.
“Open… the doors…” Esh managed to say through his agony. “And leave me.”
He did this and Esh went unconscious.
51 - Healing
The services for the dead King lasted thirty sun-cycles. In all that time, Esh did not see Dashine. Not once.
When Esh awoke one sun-cycle later from the incident he was told that Barish had been found barely clinging to life and that the main sorcerer of the Kingdom, with the help of the dark sorcery of Shten, was able to freeze and sustain his life for a limited time. Esh visited Barish every sun-cycle and spoke to him as if he was able to hear him. He thanked him for his sacrifice and even made fun of the dumb way his face was frozen.
He spent the rest of his time with Shten exploring the city above the ocean. He hadn’t seen Drohdroh, not until the evening of the fourteenth sun-cycle.
Esh had just finished a swim, for he had fallen in love with the body of liquid. It felt soothing on his body and calmed the pain in his stitched-up nub. He was sitting on a lower wooden platform when he heard steps on the ladder behind him.
“Want some company?” asked Drohdroh.
“Sure,” Esh replied, not bothering to turn around.
“I’m sorry,” Drohdroh said, sitting beside him. “I know you cared for Master Rift; we all did. He was an honorable humanoid and he will be missed. And as for Xep, well, that loss hurts me as well… but the lust for power can infiltrate the best of us I suppose.”
Esh said nothing; he just nodded his head.
“I think now is a good time for questions,” said Drohdroh. He took off his boots and put his feet in the liquid. The body heat in his legs created a thick white steam which scared the fish that had come to nibble on Esh’s toes.
“Who sent you?” Esh asked, already prepared with a list of questions.
“Why, your mother and father of course,” he said nonchalantly.
“They’re alive?”
“Well of course they are… Did anyone ever tell you that they were dead?”
Looking back, Esh realized that Drohdroh was right… He had never asked if they were dead or alive. He’d just always assumed they were.
Drohdroh put a comforting hand on his shoulder, “I actually came here to let you know that I will be leaving and taking Barish with me. I know a place that can heal his wounds.”
Esh pulled his feet from the liquid and turned to Drohdroh with a crazed face. “Where? Tell me!” he demanded.
“Calm down, Esh. Come see for yourself. Come meet your parents in the land of the fifth territory.”
Esh shook his head in disbelief. Had he just heard correctly? “Fifth territory?”
Drohdroh nodded and took his hand off his shoulder.
Esh turned back to the blue splashing liquid, thinking for a moment. His mind was filled to capacity with questions. How did Drohdroh get here? How’d he know where to find him? How did he know he was in trouble? How did his parents get to the fifth territory in the first place? Why did his parents leave him?
With all these questions buzzing in his head, he only asked one of them.
“When do we leave?”
Before Esh was the most massive animal he had ever seen. It was almost as big as the Ballahranian city he stood in and was rounded like a perfect boulder.
At the tip of its body was an enormous mouth filled with thousands and thousands of minuscule razor-sharp teeth. Above the mouth was a small dot of an eye that moved and watched the humanoids below it.
The animal, they called a Jugthram, filled its lungs with air and used its natural sorcery powers to suspend itself in the sky for long amounts of time.
The Jugthram was used as a means for humanoid and supply transportation between and above liquid cities. Apparently, the body of liquid was too dangerous to traverse for long distances; there were too many big predatory fish.
The Jugthram was also very well paid for its work with lots of love and food. Esh, Shten, and Drohdroh would be using their very own Jugthram named Bion to move to the uncharted territory. Or at least, uncharted to most.
“All packed up?” asked Drohdroh carrying his bow, quiver, and a bag of clothes.
“There was nothing to pack up. I wore all that I owned,” responded Esh, not taking his eyes off the amazing beast.
“Same goes for me,” said Shten.
“Hmm… how sad,” said Drohdroh.
The Ballahranians had placed a wooded bridge between Bion and the platform. Drohdroh and Shten made their way along the path with the ship hands that were busy loading the Jugthram with essential supplies.
These workers included mostly volunteers, Ballahranians who wanted an adventure and even included a few other humanoids from different territories that had traveled long distances having heard of the chance to find a new home. How they had found out about this journey, Esh had no idea.
All of this would have been amazing to him but he couldn’t get his mind off of something.
He looked back at the palace that rose high in the sky with its pointed towers. He imagined Dashine sticking her head out one of the windows and blowing him a kiss when the captain of Bion called out to him below.
“Better get on board! We are about to hit the skies!”
Esh didn’t answer but trudged onto the bridge, his heart depressed. He felt guilty about his wish to see Dashine. She was probably sick with sadness at the loss of her father. Now she had no one. Who better than Esh to know how that must have felt.
Esh boarded Bion and took some time to rub the beast’s skin. He was surprised when Bion responded by cooing and humming at him, shaking the entirety of the bridge he walked on.
All the humanoids, now boarded upon the wide deck on the beast’s back, stood on the side to wave at all the humanoids below as the Jugthram sucked in air through its mouth and ascended into the heavens. There was a strange feeling in the pit of Esh’s stomach as they soared through the white puffs in the sky. He finally had started to feel a little better when a breathless Drohdroh hurried up to him.
“Esh! Come quick… Something has boarded with us. Something… deadly… two… already dead! Hurry!”
Esh rushed after Drohdroh, drawing his blade and subconsciously grateful for the distraction. They sprinted across the platforms that had been fitted all across Bion’s back before Drohdroh stopped at the supplies door. He opened it, revealing a dark stairwell.
“Down here,” he said. “Be ready.”
Esh followed him, keeping his steps as quiet as possible. His heart beat rapidly and he couldn’t help but feel excited. Hopefully all this down time hadn’t made him sloppy.
T
hey made it to the bottom of the stairs, their footsteps creaking on the old wood.
“Spread out. Call out to me if you see anything,” Drohdroh said, racking an arrow.
“Same to you,” Esh whispered.
They went in opposite directions. It was pitch black in the supply cellar with only the lines of light that came through the cracks in the walls to traverse by. Esh had stopped counting how many boxes he had run into. He would surely be killed by whatever was in here if he didn’t stop making so much noise.
Something moved across the room.
“Drohdroh!” hissed Esh. No response. “Drohdroh!” Still nothing.
Esh crept towards the noise, his senses on full alert. Whatever it was, it had taken down Drohdroh without a sound. The most dangerous of killers were the most silent.
The noise had stopped by the time he made it to the other end. And so he waited, his sword held in his left hand.
The noise started back up again and this time he pinpointed a box from which the sound was coming. He moved towards it slowly. Once he’d reached it the noise stopped again.
“Gotcha,” Esh cried and shoved the tip of the sword straight into the side of the box.
Silence.
Esh squinted his eyes in confusion and used his hips to move the box a little more in the light. He pulled his sword out and used it to pry the top off. The black beast sprung from the depths of the crate and pushed him against the wall. Before Esh could even react his lips were met by another pair of lips. He knew whose they were and he kissed them back.
“Good to see you again, Lord Esh,” Dashine said, putting her head on his chest. He put a hand to her cheeks and felt their warm stickiness from recent tears.
“Please, just call me Esh.”
The Adventure Continues in “The Fifth Territory”
Coming Early 2018
Message to the Readers
Hello there! Stevie here!
I wanted to thank you sincerely for purchasing this book and to say that I hope you had fun with your time in the world of the Four Territories. This is my first of many Epic Fantasy novels and I had an amazing time writing it.
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Dedications
A big thank you to my best friend, Wesley Beaver. Thank you for sharing your ideas with me and for allowing me to play in the sands of them. This world is for you!
“A” Collier, my brother, thanks for always putting a fire to my furnace of creativity. (I know that’s lame, but don’t laugh. It’s true.) Your constant encouragement reassured me of my abilities and kept me writing.
To my mom, you always believed in me no matter how crazy my endeavors were. You were always there for me when times got tough and you will always be my number 1 fan. Promise.
To my dad, I know High Epic Fantasy is exactly the opposite of what you enjoy but you always stopped what you were doing to listen to my ideas on how to market this book. Thanks for listening.
To my beautiful girlfriend, Jessica Fox, thank you for putting up with my writing when I could have been on the couch watching tv with you or taking you on dates. Thank you for not only understanding but for believing in me as well.
To my wonderful grandparents, who would rather read and watch westerns but take occasional breaks to listen to me talk about elves and orcs. :)
I love you all. Thank you for your support.
Special Thanks to my Beta Readers:
Moises Herrera
Garret Notttingham
If I have forgotten anyone please let me know!
About the Author
Stevie Collier is an American Fantasy Author who has just graduated University with a degree in Business and a degree in French.
When he isn’t writing dark and epic fantasy you can find him at the gym pumping iron or running with his spoiled white Siberian Husky named Spartacus.
He loves watching movies (Horror, Action, Comedy, and ANYTHING Star Wars) along with a lot of anime. A LOT of anime. Not to mention that he is also an avid MMORPG player!
He grew up with way too many creative ideas in his head and so he had to make a decision. Either sit and write down all his stories... or allow his brain to explode fantasy all over the walls.
Table of Contents
Contents
Copyright
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Bloody Beginnings
Act 1
1 - Loathed
2 - Land of Sin
3 - Savior
4 - Training
5 - The Choosing
6 - Undesirables
7 - Deceiving Looks
8 - The Wisps
9 - Secrets of a Trash Worker
10 - Breakfast with an Assassin
11 - Barda the Assassin
12 - Sorcery Takes its Toll
13 - Pleasant Complications
14 - An Odd Team
15 - Downstream
16 - The Cooling Sword
17 - The Rektops
18 - Inner Demons
19 - The Bells
20 - Alchemy Lesson One
21 - The Warlock
22 - Exile
23 - Esh's Trial
24 - The Training Begins
25 - Murderous Intent
26 - Revenge
27 - Mission Complete
Act 2
28 - Socially Awkward
30 - Barish
31 - The Arena
32 - Let the Bloodshed Begin
33 - The Magnificent King of Reah
34 - Crash Landing
35 - Unfamiliar Kindness
36 - Betrayal
37 - The Underground Battle
38 - The Great Escape
39 - The Purple Territory
40 - The Potion of Knowledge
41 - The Wailers
42- The Dark Prince
Act 3
43 - Vexdor
44 - Surprise Visitor
45 - Harmonious Sorcery
46 - Party Crashers
47 - The Trial
48 - The Banquet
49 - The Lurid Link
50 - The Severing of Sorcery
51 - Healing
52 - Bion
Message to the Reader
Dedications
About the Author
The Four Territories: The Dark Assassin Book One Page 35