by Kat Bastion
Born of Mist and Legend
Kat Bastion
Contents
About Born of Mist and Legend
Praise for Stories Written by Kat & Stone Bastion
Also by Kat & Stone Bastion
Dedication
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
Chapter 41
Chapter 42
Chapter 43
Chapter 44
Chapter 45
Chapter 46
Chapter 47
Chapter 48
Chapter 49
Chapter 50
Chapter 51
Epilogue
Thank You!
Want to Read More?
About the Authors
Charity Support & Awareness
About Born of Mist and Legend
Amid mythical lands, where Arthurian tales run blood-deep and castles vanish into fabled mist, a stormy sky breaks open with deafening thunder on a dying mother’s whispered enchantment… and her newborn’s die is cast. Eighteen summers later, magick sparks to life within the charmed child’s veins, and the fates resume their course.
Rise of a fallen angel…
Rebirth of a Highland goddess…
Revenge of a legendary wizard, craving their power.
Dark angel, outcast of his kind—lone angelic guardian of time itself—Skorpius receives a bewildering dual directive. Protect a human female. And end her.
Once bright and innocent, sister to the laird of the mysterious Clan Brodie, Brigid awakens to incredible magick within her. And the ability to sense a foreign energy: Another stalks her, a beast hunting its prey.
On a quest to protect her clan and save humankind, Brigid forges beyond the only home she’s ever known into the wilds of Scotland. Her destiny—to battle an ancient lurking menace—beckons her. She braves her task with fierce determination, even though she’s a mere novice among masters.
Upholding his vow to protect time against any threat, Skorpius is duty-bound to guard the female, with or without her consent. For he alone presides as judge and executioner.
As unprecedented danger to the fabric of time looms, the two beleaguered souls walk a tightrope between cure and cause. Yet while the destiny of every realm hangs in the balance, they are all that stand between salvation and destruction.
But against insurmountable odds…will they both survive?
Praise for Stories Written by Kat & Stone Bastion
Awards and Praise for
Forged in Dreams and Magick
First Place – Unpublished Beacon Award
Best Paranormal Romance
First Place – Hold Me, Thrill Me Award
Best Paranormal Romance
Chosen by FreshFiction.com as their Fresh Pick for October 22, 2013
“A beautifully woven tale about love, choices, courage and destiny, Forged in Dreams and Magick is one of the best time-traveling novels. Fans of Gabaldon’s Outlander will love it.”
Bookish Temptations
“I was gripping my iPad like a crazy woman and fanning myself from the smoldering romance. Lawdy!”
The Flirty Reader
“Bastion’s debut is pure perfection, a combination of romance, magic, emotion, adventure and surprising twists and turns. This is a truly unique romance that should not be missed!”
TheBookQueen
“HOLY HELL!!! I am so… um… wow! FABULOUSNESS. Forged in Dreams and Magick definitely makes my BEST OF list for 2013…”
That's What I'm Talking About
“A story guaranteed to enthrall with lushly detailed travels into times long gone by. Woven with love, passion, magic and legend, the story had me hooked from the very first chapter.”
Read-Love-Blog
“Kat Bastion’s wonderful debut brings a new voice to the fore. Her voice is strong and unhesitating, very human and real, sometimes young and delicious in her treatment of intimacy and relationship development.”
Fangs Wands & Fairydust
“OMG, Bastion hits all cylinders in this supernatural tale. The layers in the book were fascinating, and I devoured the fun, adventuresome read.”
Literati Literature Lovers
Praise for
Bound by Wish and Mistletoe
“I LOVED it! Bound by Wish and Mistletoe is, to my mind, a perfect entry in the historical / paranormal fiction genre and has quite a bit to offer.”
Fab Fantasy Fiction
“Kat Bastion has done it again! … Excellent holiday novella, perfect for a cup of cocoa and snuggling under a blanket in front of the fireplace this holiday season.”
That's What I'm Talking About
“Move over, Julia Quinn and Sabrina Jeffries! Kat Bastion is an absolutely gifted author and deserves to be recognized for her talent.”
LovesHistorical Book Reviews
Praise for
Heartbreaker
“This book has definitely earned its five stars and I am just floored right now. The passion is explosive, the story itself is beautiful, and the emotions are so real my heart is ready to burst. Beautiful book. Absolutely breathtaking.”
One Page at a Time
“Heartrending, passionate, and captivating! Heartbreaker is a riveting page-turner that will leave you breathless with raw emotions, and the need to hold tight to the ones you love!”
Beneath the Covers Blog
“This book is all about flawless writing, exemplary storytelling, f*#king insane character development. The right dose of sexy hotness…”
Love N. Books
“The Bastions are at it again with this beautiful and heartbreaking story. You will absolutely fall in love with Kiki and Darren’s love.”
Under the Covers Book Blog
“Heartbreaker is a phenomenal story.”
That’s What I’m Talking About
“I loved it…wonderfully compelling, a story that touched my heart in so many ways and characters I will remember for a long time to come.”
Girl Who Reads
Praise for the
NO WEDDINGS SERIES
“One of the best romantic comedies of the year!”
Agents of Romance
“The No Weddings series is one of the best I have read that follows one couple. Cade and Hannah are both lovable characters, the storyline is real and entertaining, and the banter is fun and witty.”
Lives & Breathes Book Blog
“I loved it, and I mean REALLY loved it!”
Orchard Book Club
“This is an exceptional series… You find yourself fully engrossed in their world and can’t put the book down.”
“The No Weddings series has a group of such amazing characters; you can’t help but relate to them and feel the emotion in every situation they encounter. It has been a long time since a story has made me feel that way let alone an entire series!”
Under the Covers Book Blog
“The story of Cade & Hannah’s relationship is realistic, heart-warming, and filled with real-world connections that shook me in a way that few titles I’ve read this year have managed…I have loved every minute of the No Weddings series.”
That's What I’m Talking About
Also by Kat & Stone Bastion
THE TRAVELER: Initiate Years
Veil of Realms
Secrets of Alexandria
Panther Rising
Stones of Power
Highland Magick
Highland Legends Series
Forged in Dreams and Magick
Bound by Wish and Mistletoe
Born of Mist and Legend
Found in Flame and Moonlight
Standalone Novel
The Espionage Effect
Unbreakable Series
Heartbreaker
Rule Breaker
Lawbreaker
No Weddings Series
No Weddings
One Funeral
Two Bar Mitzvahs
Three Christmases
For Valentine’s
(a steamy nightcap novella)
Romantic Poetry for Charity
Utterly Loved
Foreword by Sylvain Reynard
Dedication
To the different, perfect just the way we are . . .
Chapter 1
The very fabric of time…shifted.
Skorpius arrived during that split second in Earth-realm when all that had happened, everything which currently was, and infinite events preordained to pass began a monumental cascade of restructuring.
From the shadowy coolness of an ancient forest, the powerful angel arched his black wings and drew in a slow breath as he concentrated on identifying the destructive anomaly.
The timeline-quake rippled forth on a subatomic level, detectable to only a rare few: those uniquely attuned to elemental forces. As the curious disturbance rumbled on, hairline cracks shattered outward through the ether, a bending and bucking that began to liquefy the foundation of the manifested world.
And an ever-increasing energy pulsed from its epicenter.
Faster than the blink of a human eye, he materialized his sword and burst into a haze of light and speed as he ghosted through old-growth trees in his path.
His blade—made of bluish otherworldly metal and forged from the imaginings of his winged race—arced around and regained full solid form as he arrived at ground zero. But at the last instant, he jerked up, just shy of delivering a deadly blow.
“Brigid?” he mouthed the female’s name as recognition struck. A person he knew, barely, by association.
A mere mortal.
Impossible.
A flinty gaze stared up at him from pale gray eyes. That sparked silver—with magick.
Then the physical world stretched. Instead of the startling human standing her ground scant inches from the edge of his sword, she flashed into nothingness, then back into existence hundreds of yards away, bow in hand, arrow nocked back.
An instant later, her loosed arrow raced through the air. Tendrils of mist curled in its wake, carved by a goose-feather fletching. The faint whistle of its flight hushed the birdsong of a pending dawn.
The arrow’s iron tip came within a hairsbreadth of piercing the pupil of his eye before he shifted into fine mist once again. But a chilling draft of molecules brushed over his senses as they fogged through his being.
Hot fury pulsed through his veins as his cells surged back into solid form.
The female narrowed those silvery eyes. “Doona follow me!” she bit out on a whisper. A slight breeze lifted the outer ringlets of her long copper hair—that glinted, from no apparent light source. Her very essence charged, unable to contain all the magnificent energy she embodied.
“Not following.” The preternatural bass of his voice vibrated the dense forest floor. Hunting, he silently corrected as he dematerialized his sword. No need for bloodshed. Yet.
With his own flash, he vanished, then reappeared inches away, towering over the tall female.
Her cool gaze tracked along the upper curve of a wing as he arched them over his shoulders. Every feather ruffled, taut in irritation.
Unafraid, the reckless female lifted her chin, hardened her jaw, and huffed out a low snort. An unforgiving expression blasted his way. Liar! Her thought, charged with aggression, echoed toward him on the mental plane.
“Not by choice,” he growled in retort.
Obligation, he further reasoned to himself. Mandated by some sudden potential cataclysm. Because nothing else explained why superhuman powers emanated from her, and why he’d blinked onto the scene the moment they had.
And why wasn’t I briefed on the situation? Even when dire, there’d always been time.
With an indignant snort, his aggressor whirled around, then stalked away. She disappeared through a leafy curtain of saplings. And the power signature she’d been blasting moments ago dimmed to a faint echo.
Toward his left, a slight rustling of scrub announced someone’s clumsy entrance before a second, more familiar, female arrived. Familiar, but just as irritating.
In generous respect, he dipped a curt nod toward Isobel. “Traveler.” The prophesied Traveler, a recent immortal, originated from the twenty-first century, when she’d been human; but through the time travel that had transformed her, had since developed roots and a home nearly a millennium prior, in medieval Scotland.
“Sunshine,” she mimicked, attempting his deeper tone. The corners of her lips twitched, exposing her self-amusement as she reveled in a favorite derogatory nickname for him.
Not in a mood to indulge in humor, he ignored the jibe.
Of greater import? Time had begun to waver.
After a brief systems check, he consulted his inborn chronometer to verify the time and place he had materialized into rang true, that the two females remained in their common-home time by the human Julian Calendar. They did: the Scottish Highlands, 1297 CE, the twenty-fifth of August. Then he catalogued the energy signatures of their surroundings, because if he hadn’t been officially assigned the task at hand—and the unorthodox lack of intel suggested as much—some other elemental force had compelled his presence.
“What brings you to our neck of the woods?” Isobel’s gaze tracked a yellow-and-black swallowtail butterfly as it flitted nearby on an air current.
Good question. “Business. You?”
“Same.”
Interesting. “You’re not here because of Brigid?” He stared off into a dark void between the trees, the invisible pull at his core growing stronger the farther his quarry traveled.
“I am.” She shrugged. “Bridge invited me hunting. But I bailed on having any sporting fun the second I got out here. Something feels…off.”
“Beyond off.” No doubt about it.
“Okay, good. You feel it too.” Isobel also glanced toward the direction where her friend had disappeared. Then she pressed the heel of her hand to her chest and rubbed. Her face scrunched, then she frowned with a heavy sigh. “Tell me it’s not Brigid.”
With narrowed eyes, Skorpius continued to stare into the dark recesses of the forest as he considered the ever-increasing tug to the same area of his chest.
Isobel stared at him.
He remained silent. No point in confirming the obvious.
They both clearly sensed the growing danger.
Two keepers of time—one born of ancient power, the other a fledgling coming into her own—had been summoned to rectify a developing situation.
The fact that he’d had no forewarning, no details of the impending event as per custom, didn’t faze him. It invigorated hi
m. Nothing beat the challenge of a mystery, especially after eons of predictability and habit.
A flock of birds erupted into the sky from the tree canopy at the same instant a deeper vibration resonated through the air.
“Holy shit.” Isobel blinked, then tore off at a sprint after the source—toward Brigid.
He strode behind at a slower pace, not in any hurry to step into the path of another arrow. “One way to put it.” In the modern vernacular Isobel clung tightly to. “Definitely more and more interesting.” The source-power from the epicenter had magnified. And generated infinitesimal rifts in time. Again.