JUSTICE (The Ferryman + The Flame #2)

by Paille, Rhiannon

  Black wisps crawled along his back and Krishani glanced up. The Vultures taunted him, mocked him. He took the orb in his uninfected hand, dropping the box onto the grass. He turned to the battlefield, white smoke rising like extinguished fires into the sky. Vultures blotted out the stars as Krishani limped across the field, his gait uneven.

  He moved towards the nearest cloud of darkness, pawing through it. He fell on his knees, cacophonic whispers slitting his ears. Biting frost stung his extremities as he knelt over the body and grabbed its hand. He couldn’t see the face, but he recognized the shape of the fingers and remembrance flooded him. Aulises. He gasped, dropping her hand as his muscles failed him. His left hand unfurled, the orb falling onto her chest. Violet light blinded him temporarily.

  Krishani gaped at the light he had seen in her eyes a million times before. Amethyst-colored light surrounded Aulises in a protective shield. Krishani thought of Pux and tried not to grimace. Kaliel had healed him.

  The Vultures gave them a wide berth. Krishani pressed his fists to the ground, taking short shallow breaths. He cringed at the muscle spasms stinging his insides with silent lacerations. The Vultures recoiled from the body. Waves washed over the body in successions. Krishani glanced around him. The Vultures waited, hesitant tendrils slithering in and out of reach.

  The violet light dimmed and blacked out.

  Wispy smoke rose out of Aulises’s mouth.

  Krishani dropped her hand and clutched his chest as everything plunged into icy darkness. Vultures covered Krishani in an inky abyss, obscuring his vision as wisps of white smoke spilled out of the girl and disappeared inside their void. They inhaled every last drop and retreated into the sky, leaving the dead body behind.

  “Kaliel!” Krishani cried as he stumbled to his feet, tripping over Aulises. He stretched his hands to the sky, willing the Vultures to return, but they disappeared against the backdrop of clouds. He fell on his knees and heaved in anguish. He clenched and released his fist and the sky burst, torrential rainfall splattering the land.

  Tulsen was right. He couldn’t follow the Vultures. Wherever they had taken Kaliel he couldn’t go. Self-hatred laced into him, making all the pain he felt before seem like nothing. He had her in his hands, he had her and he lost her in the blink of an eye.

  Arms circled his chest and he recognized the curve of her body as she pressed against his back. Anger drowned him in the cruel stab of reality. Aulises lived.

  “I told you not to touch me again,” his tone baleful. He recanted the urge to turn and crush her throat with his bare hands. The desire to destroy everything in sight gained against the melancholy. He clenched his fist and the rain came down in heavier sheets, making the battlefield invisible.

  The voice that replied wasn’t what he expected. “What happened to me?”

  Heat flushed through him. His insides shook as the frostbite thawed and burned him from the inside out.

  “Aulises?” He wouldn’t have been surprised if his heart gave out.

  The arms fell away from him. “She . . . died.”

  Krishani convulsed. “Kaliel?” He whipped around, speechless the moment he saw her fiery orbs of liquid amethyst instead of Aulises’s traitorous green eyes. She nodded, sending black curls forward over her shoulders. She slid her hands into his. Her touch burned, making him think about the curse covering his body in black patches.

  She was a girl, and she was with him.

  “I’m here,” she said.

  Krishani didn’t say anything. He pulled his hands out of hers and cupped her face. His mouth came down on hers, lips crushing together as he wound his hands into her curls of black hair. This was the only thing he ever wanted. From the first time he caught her at the waterfall, swimming with the merfolk to the last time he saw her fleeing towards the Village of the Shee. His rough and bruised hands found the small of her back as he clutched her. She let out a whimper and parted her lips. He pressed his mouth harder onto hers. He was dizzy with pleasure, the mere feel of her healing him.

  Krishani pulled away, gasping for air. He traced a finger down her rain-splattered cheeks. She shivered, her eyes imploring him to kiss her again. She reached for him, her hands finding the nape of his neck. He groaned at the touch and seized her lips once more. She buzzed with the magic he had missed for moons, wild desire making it hard to see straight.

  “I thought of you every day,” he whispered.

  She clutched him tighter, her head resting on his shoulder. “And I you.”

  “Is this real?”

  “I don’t know. There was something else in the box.” She broke off, her eyes worried. Krishani frowned. He left the box in the grass somewhere. He pressed his hands into her shoulders and gave her a meaningful look. He didn’t have to tell her to stay put as he swiftly crossed the field and grabbed the box. As he turned she was right behind him, her new body almost as small as her old one. He smirked; she never listened. It was like she couldn’t help it. Krishani went to lift the lid, but she reached forward and slid open a hidden compartment. A small scroll slid from inside it. She took it in her hands. The rain dwindled to a drizzle, covering them in a sheet of mist that reminded Krishani of the waterfall. He looked at her as she scanned the parchment. A gift from the Great Hall. He stifled the urge to kiss her again and wrapped a protective arm around her waist.

  “What is it?” he asked as she unfurled the scroll.

  She gasped as it fell into the grass, wet spots spreading over the symbols. Krishani glanced at it and recognized it, too. It was almost an exact replica of what Kaliel had drawn in her journal. He remembered what she had said the night they made love. They were together before, but everyone burned. The images on the parchment were no longer idle sketches in her journal. They were real, it was real. Whatever she had seen, it was true.

  Krishani stared at the parchment. On the left, the Ferryman sat on a throne, across from him, staring into his eyes with a look that meant only one thing, was the Flame.

  “It’s a prophecy,” Kaliel whispered.

  Krishani gathered her into his arms and pressed her head into his shoulder. She shook, sobbing, and he knew she was thinking about the Great Oak and the parable that brought her to the top of a volcano. Danger surrounded them, the Horsemen, the Daed, the Vultures, and Morgana. He had almost forgotten about the little girl with the bloody hands, but she was out there somewhere.

  And he knew what she was going to do.

  Krishani clutched Kaliel tighter and rested his head on hers. He would protect her this time. Keep her away from all the evil things threatening to tear them apart.

  “I won’t lose you again,” he whispered.

  She didn’t respond, and he held her like he was clinging to her life just as much as he was clinging to his own.

  Acknowledgments

  Nobody ever talks about the down sides of publishing in the acknowledgements so I’m going to start there.

  My journey hasn’t been easy. This book barely happened, the only reason it’s here is because it was a first draft and I have a handful of fans who want to read it. (Thank you to these fans, more about you later)

  I went through a major upheaval this year. You know I wasn’t lucky enough to get a literary agent on the first try, or the second try, or the hundredth try, but I did try. I wasn’t paid an advance so I could sit back and write books (instead of working the infamous day job) and I wasn’t given a hoard of fans on a silver platter (because the publishing house loved my book and the marketing team got me big time reviews on publishers weekly and kirkus and US Today.) The point is, I’m no book sensation. I’m a prairie girl that has been writing since I was twelve and wanted to see my stuff published.

  I took the wrong road. Ultimately, Small Press is not for me. I found myself paying for all the marketing, cover design, book trailer, promotions, etc. I found myself getting one royalty cheque in a whole twelve months (and it was 32 bucks.) I made the decision in August to break away and continue the journey on my o
wn.

  Around the same time I broke off with the Small Press, it seemed like everything caved in. Suddenly my cover designer didn’t want to work with me, my cover model, photographer and other models didn’t want anything to do with me (that was a friendship falling out and had nothing to do with the book, in hindsight though, don’t work with your friends, it’s a bad idea.) Anyway, I had to start the series from scratch. SCRATCH.

  After I was finished with all the pulling my hair out and crying, I decided to put on my big girl panties and relax. I’ve been my own boss for the past eight years, publishing is just another business. No it’s not easy, and no I’m not going to have the support of the bigger companies, but I learned enough from the people I had previously worked with to do it myself.

  That’s when I began choosing my team.

  For Justice I chose Hugh Rookwood for most of the interior art pieces. He’s a comic book artist from Toronto whom I’ve known for the past seven years and a great guy. He’s also very creative so when I told him what Vultures were, he came back with this wicked amazing sketch that looked like a Vulture crossed with a Dementor. He also made Crestaos look modern and scary, which is what I wanted. I’m sick of everyone wearing cloaks.

  Marc Wolfe was the genius behind the Kaliel piece on the cover of Surrender, and the cover of Justice. He works for Lucasfilm on a lot of Star Wars art, so when I asked him to help me out, initially I told him Krishani was Loki as a Jedi. The cover for Justice is Krishani holding the sword “Jedi style” with the cloak billowing around him “Anakin style.”

  Marie de la Rosa Sanchez from Paranormal Reads was kind enough to help me out with typography, and she’s a sweetheart with lightning fast turn around. She’s also releasing a book!

  Cory Putman Oaks, Natasha Heck, Melanie Chartier, Joy Whiteside, Rae Smith, and Sabina Grosse BETA read this book and left reviews on Goodreads for it. I am eternally grateful to anyone who picks up this book and falls in love with it. I sometimes adopt my fans, like Melanie who I also have to thank for helping me at C4 Comic Con. I couldn’t have handled it without you!

  Also, thank you to my daughters/cleaning fairies Sapphyre and Jade. You’re both growing up so fast, and I can’t wait until you’re old enough to read my books. (Seriously, a few more years.)

  And to my husband who handles as much as he possibly can so I can write more books. I really can’t do this without you, the housework alone would bury me.

  Lastly, to the fans I haven’t met, I hope you love and hate this book for all the right reasons. If you want me to continue writing you need to review it, tell your friends about it, and start a riot! (Not for real, but you know what I mean.) The only way this series is ever going to get into the hands of a bigger publisher is you! The more people who get on board this crazy train, the better chances it has of going somewhere. As the creepy guy at Disneyland once said, “If you don’t row, we don’t go.”

  I’ll do my part and keep writing you fiction that keeps you glued to the page, doesn’t follow the traditional rules (what’s a “satisfying ending” anyway?) and makes you angry, sad, and swoony.

  “I’m not giving up, I’m just giving in.” Never Let me Go – Florence + The Machine

  The Ferryman + The Flame

  Master Companion

  FAIR WARNING: This guide contains spoilers and info that even my characters don’t know yet. To make matters worse, the characters sometimes get their information wrong because again, they don’t know. To make things even more confusing, some characters have opinions that differ from the facts, which may or may not conflict with this guide. Read at your own risk, it’ll help with some things, and with others it’ll at least give you some of the background info into the series.

  TERMS GUIDE:

  Isle of Avristar Traditions and Word Usages:

  Lands: The World (usually meaning a single planet)

  Lands Across the Stars: The Universe (usually meaning planets that are scattered across the sky.)

  Lands of Men: Home to humans, Earth is over there somewhere too.

  Lands of Immortals: Home to elvens, fae, draconians and other creatures who live for a long time.

  Lands of Beasts: Home to demons and nasty creatures.

  Land of the Dead: That place nobody ever goes to or talks about.

  Kinfolk: people, children, an assortment of fae, elven, feorns, centaurs, shee. It’s a catch all for all types of mythological creatures living on Avristar.

  Moons: months

  Summers: years

  Marry the Land: literal, meaning to marry Avristar, the Female Spirit of the Land. This is a tradition that occurs around a kinfolk’s twenty fifth summer. It ensures the kinfolk protection, signifies adulthood and loyalty to their home.

  Journey to the Great Oak: a journey all kinfolk take around their fifteenth summer to learn their destiny. Half the battle is decoding the parables the Great Oak speaks in.

  Fire Festival: a bi-annual festival held in the Royal City on Orlondir during Samhain and Beltane. The idea is that they light bonfires, hold games, a feast, and bless the land. It’s the two most important events of the year for the kinfolk.

  Children of Avristar: literal, meaning Children born in thickets of grass, hollows of trees or beds of flowers. Children of Avristar cannot have their own children unless given that right by Avristar herself.

  TIMELINE GUIDE:

  First Era (Circa, 65 Million Years Ago): Lands Across the Stars were in their birth and growth stages, the Valtanyana was forming and gaining more and more power.

  Second Era (Circa, 150,000 years ago – 5000BCE): Lands Across the Stars were almost completely destroyed, rebuilding stages, the Valtanyana were locked in Avrigost, High King Tor ruled from the Great Hall.

  Third Era (Circa, 5,000BCE – Present Day): Lands Across the Stars were reclaimed by the Valtanyana, chaos is erupting on every Land, technology is on the rise, magic is banned on some Lands.

  SPECIES GUIDE:

  Creatures on Avristar:

  Elven: tall, pale skin, elongated ears

  Feorn: part wolf, part man, wolf-like feet, hairy, small pointed ears

  Fae: glass-like faces, tall, paper thin wings, elongated ears, pale skin

  Shee: six to twelve inches tall, glittery, wings, pale

  Centaurs: part human, part horse

  Gargoyles: bat-like wings, smushy faces, turn to stone in daylight,

  Humans: tanned, short, dull features

  Other Creatures:

  Vultures / Wraiths: darkness embodied, soul eaters

  Draconians: humanoid dragons

  Mithronians: humanoid dinosaurs (specifically triceretops)

  Goblins: gangly malformed humanoid creatures, floating eyes, long arms, elephant man-like.

  Drow: black skinned Elvens, also known as “creatures” simply because my characters didn’t know what the technical term for them was.

  CHARACTER GUIDE:

  Heroes:

  Kaliel of Evennses: (cal-ee-elle of Evan-sess):

  The Amethyst Flame from the First Era. She’s been reborn as a Child of Avristar, a second chance after all of the destruction in the First Era.

  Krishani of Amersil: (krish-aw-nee of Am-er-sill):

  The Ferryman from the First Era. He’s been reborn and sent to Avristar by his ancestors the Tavesin Family from Terra (Earth), the Lands of Men. They’re passing him off as a Child of Avristar until he can safely return to Terra and take his rightful place as the Ferryman.

  Pux of Evennses:

  A feorn (half wolf, half man) who is considered invalid and will never amount to greatness. He’s a hidden genius. Later revealed as the son of Lady Atara.

  Inhabitants of the Isle of Avristar:

  Luenelle of Evennses (Loo-en-elle): Elven, Child of Avristar. House Master at the House of Kin, Evennses.

  Desaunius of Evennses (Dess-aw-nee-us): Tempie, High King Tor’s former betrothed, originated from Tempia, fled to Avristar due to the wars with the Valtanyana. Kali
el’s first mentor.

  Lady Atara, Sovereign of Avristar: Elven, Child of Avristar, Appointed in the First Era, married to both Avristar herself and Lord Istar. Kaliel’s second mentor.

  Mallorn the Kiirar (Kee-rawr): Elven, Fled to Avristar from Talanisdir, Lands of Immortals due to the wars with the Valtanyana.

  Adoron of Amersil (A-door-on): Elven, Child of Avristar, has lived in Avristar all his life. Krishani’s first elder

  Lord Istar, Sovereign of Avristar: Elven, Child of Avristar. Appointed in the First Era, is married to both Avristar herself and Lady Atara. Krishani’s second elder.

  Benir of Amersil (Ben-eer): Elven, Child of Avristar. Member of the Brotherhood of Amersil, loyal to High King Tor. Krishani’s friend

  Melianna of Handele (Mel-ee-anna): Elven, Daughter of General Handele, leader of the Armies of Avristar. Lady Atara’s servant, lives in the Royal City of Orlondir.

  Handele of Avristar (Hand-elle): Elven, Child of Avristar, General of the Armies of Avristar. Travels in the Lands of Men.

  Hernadette of Avristar: Feorn, Child of Avristar. Lives in the Royal City of Orlondir, servant, one of the oldest Children of Avristar.

  Shimma, Daughter of Lord Istar of Avristar: Witch, half human, half elven. Istar’s youngest daughter, grew up in Avristar, escaped to Nimphalls, Lands of Men, returned due to the unrest in those lands.

  Kuruny, Daughter of Lord Istar of Avristar: (Koo-roo-nee) Witch, half human, half elven. Istar’s daughter, grew up in Avristar, escaped to Nimphalls, Lands of Men, returned due to the hex placed upon her by the humans.

  Kazza, Daughter of Lord Istar of Avristar: Witch, half human, half elven. Istar’s eldest daughter, grew up in Avristar, escaped to Nimphalls, Lands of Men, returned due to the growing unrest in those lands.