Deceived by Magic (The Baine Chronicles Book 6)

by Jasmine Walt

  “I’m sure you do,” I responded with a grin. A warm breeze laced with magic licked against the nape of my neck, and I shivered in anticipation. Finished with our ice cream, we paid for our drinks, then left, my left hand in Iannis’s and my right hand in Liu’s.

  There might be problems lurking on the horizon, but I knew there always would be. Life had not dealt me an easy hand—it had dealt me cards full of danger and excitement, and I wouldn’t have it any other way. Those hard times only made bright, sunny days like this even sweeter, and I wouldn’t let anyone stop me from enjoying them for all they were worth.

  To be continued…

  Sunaya’s journey will continue in Exposed by Magic, Book 7 of the Baine Chronicles! In the meantime, make sure to grab your copy of Tested by Magic, a novella exploring Sunaya’s backstory. There will be several novellas coming out that focus on different characters from the Baine Chronicles, including Fenris’s backstory as a Chief Mage (trust me, you do NOT want to miss this one). Tested by Magic and the Fenris novella will be released before Book 7, so make sure you’re subscribed to Jasmine’s newsletter so you can be notified of new releases!

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  Want to keep up with Jasmine on social media? You can find her on Facebook, follow her on Twitter @jasmine_writes, and follow her on Instagram @jasmine.walt. You can also email her at jasmine@jasminewalt.com if you have questions or just want to say hi. She loves hearing from her fans!

  Glossary

  Annia: see under Melcott, Annia.

  Ancestral Spirits: according to Shifter belief, once a being is done with reincarnation, they may become ancestral spirits.

  ar’: suffix in mages’ family names, that denotes they are of noble birth, and can trace their descent to one of Resinah’s twelve disciples.

  Baine, Sunaya: a half-panther shifter, half-mage who used to hate mages and has a passion for justice. Because magic is forbidden to all but the mage families, Sunaya was forced to keep her abilities a secret until she accidentally used them to defend herself in front of witnesses. Rather than condemn her to death, the Chief Mage, Iannis ar’Sannin, chose to take her on as his apprentice, and eventually his fiancée. She struggles to balance her shifter and mage heritage.

  Baine, Melantha: Sunaya’s cousin, and daughter to the Jaguar Clan’s Chieftain.

  Baine, Mafiela: Chieftain of the Jaguar Clan and Sunaya’s aunt.

  Baine, Mika: a young jaguar shifter, daughter of Melantha Baine.

  Baine, Rylan: one of Chieftain Baine’s least favored children, and Sunaya’s cousin. An active member of the Resistance, with the rank of Captain, he was captured and imprisoned during the uprising in Solantha. His sentence was commuted and he is currently serving it out as Sunaya’s bodyguard.

  Ballos, Jonias: a reclusive, elderly mage living in the Mages Quarter of Solantha. Sunaya’s father studied under him while he was in Solantha.

  Benefactor: the name the Resistance called their anonymous, principal source of financial support, before Sunaya unmasked her.

  The Black Curtain: shop owned by Elania Tarrignal in Witches’ End, where under-the-table hexes can be discreetly obtained.

  Canalo: one of the fifty states making up the Northia Federation, located on the West Coast of the Northia Continent.

  Canalo Council, usually just the Council: a governmental body composed of eight senior mages, supposed to advise the Chief Mage and substitute for him in case of sudden death or incapacity.

  Capitol: building in the capital, Dara, where the Convention of Chief Mages meets every other year to conduct government business.

  Chen, Lalia: the current Director of the Canalo Mages Guild in Solantha. She serves as deputy to Iannis ar’Sannin, the Chief Mage.

  Chartis, Argon: former Director of the Canalo Mages Guild, dismissed by the Chief Mage for insubordination and attempts to undermine the Chief Mage’s authority. He subsequently joined forces with the Benefactor to avenge his dismissal.

  Chieftain: a title used to distinguish the head of a shifter clan.

  Calmias, Father Monor: a charismatic preacher in Ur-God temples, with many followers all over Northia.

  Castalis: a country and peninsula at the southwestern edge of the Central Continent, ruled by Sunaya’s father, the High Mage.

  Central Continent: the largest of the continents on Recca, spanning from Garai in the east to Castalis in the west.

  Comenius Genhard: a hedgewitch from Pernia, owner of the shop Over the Hedge at Witches’ End. Close friend of Sunaya Baine, employer of Noria Melcott, and lover of the witch Elania.

  Creator: the ultimate deity, worshipped by all three races under different names.

  Dira: mage, one of the secretaries at the Mages Guild.

  Dara: capital of the Northia Federation, located on the east coast of the Northia Continent.

  Elania Tarrignal: Comenius’s fiancée; a witch specializing in potions, with a shop in Witches’ End.

  Elnos: see under Ragga, Elnos.

  Enforcer: a bounty hunter employed by the government to seek out and capture wanted criminals. They operate under strict rules and are paid bounties for each head. While the majority are human, there is a strong minority of shifters, and even the occasional mage.

  Enforcers’ Guild: the administrative organization in charge of the enforcers. Also, the building from which the various enforcer crews work under their respective foremen.

  Faonus: one of the three founding mages of the Federation.

  Fenris: formerly known as Polar ar’Tollis, the Chief Mage of Nebara. To escape execution for committing treason against the Federation, he allowed Iannis to change him into a wolf shifter. He now goes by Fenris, and lives in Solantha Palace as a close friend and confidante of the Canalo Chief Mage.

  Firegate Bridge: Solantha’s best-known structure, a large red bridge spanning the length of Solantha Bay. It is accessible via Firegate Road.

  Captain Galling: the human captain of the Enforcer’s Guild in Solantha City, appointed by the former Chief Mage and Council.

  Garai: the largest and most populated country on the Eastern Continent. Garaians are known for slanted eyes and ivory skin as well as their complicated, rune-like alphabet.

  Garidano, Cirin: The Finance Secretary of the State of Canalo. He is loyal to Iannis, but also very ambitious.

  Graning, Zavian: the Minister of the Northia Federation. Elected by the Convention for an indefinite term, he is charged with coordination of governmental business and particularly foreign affairs, between the biannual Convention sessions that he prepares and presides.

  Great Accord: a treaty struck by the ruling mages centuries ago which brought an end to a devastating war known as the Conflict. It is still the basis upon which mages rule their countries and territories. All new laws must be in accordance with the provisions of the Great Accord.

  Gulaya: a star-shaped charm, usually made of metal, that is anchored to a specific location and can take its wearer back there at need. They are rare, and difficult to recharge.

  Haman ar’Rhea: High Mage of Castalis, a country in the south-west of the Central Continent, and Sunaya’s long-lost father.

  Iannis ar’Sannin: Chief Mage of Canalo. He resides in the capital city of Solantha, from which he runs Canalo as well as the Mages Guild with the help of his deputy and Secretaries. He is originally a native of Manuc, a country located across the Eastern Sea.

  Isana ar’Rhea: daughter of the High Mage of Castalis and Sunaya’s half-sister.

  Incidium: a powerful illegal drug that produces euphoria.

  Janta Urama: mage and scholar, head librarian in the Solantha Mages Guild.

  Lanyr Goldrin: The pseudonym Rylan Baine uses in his tiger-shifter bodyguard guise.

  Leniang Port: a lawless port city on the south coast of Garai.

  Loranian: the difficult, secret language of magic that all mages are required to master.

  Mages Guild: the governmental organization tha
t rules the mages in Canalo, and supervises the other races. The headquarters are in Solantha Palace. They are subordinate to the Chief Mage.

  Magi-tech: devices that are powered by both magic and technology.

  Manuc: an island country off the west coast of the Central Continent.

  Magorah: the god of the shifters, associated with the moon.

  Melcott, Annia: a human enforcer. She is a close friend of Sunaya’s, and Noria’s older sister.

  Melcott, Noria: Annia Melcott’s younger sister. A gifted inventor, who used to work part-time in the shop Over the Hedge, belonging to Comenius Genhard, and has a mage boyfriend, Elnos. She passionately believes in equality between all races, and supports the Resistance, which she eventually joined. She is currently serving out a five-year sentence in the salt mines.

  Micara: one of the mages who made up the Founding Trio of the Federation, together with Faonus and Jeremidah.

  Mills, Thorgana: the Benefactor’s true identity. On the surface, Thorgana appears to be nothing but a human socialite, content to let others run the media empire she inherited from her late father. In actuality, she is a bloodthirsty half-shifter, half-human hybrid who hates shifters and mages with a passion, and will stop at nothing to ensure they are wiped from the face of Recca. After being exposed as the Benefactor, her companies were seized and auctioned off, and she was imprisoned in Dara.

  Minister: the mage who presides over the Convention of Chief Mages, and coordinates the affairs of the Northia Federation between sessions, particularly foreign relations. Technically the Northia Federation’s head of state, though the full Convention of Chief Mages outranks him. The office is currently held by Zavian Graning.

  Miyanta: daughter and disciple of the First Mage Resinah, from whom the ar’Rhea family traces its descent.

  Noria: see under Melcott, Noria.

  Northia Federation: a federation consisting of fifty states that cover the entire northern half and middle of the Western Continent. Canalo is part of this federation.

  Osero: one of the fifty states of the Northia Federation, located north of Canalo on the continent’s west coast.

  Over the Hedge: a shop at Witches’ End selling magical charms and herbal remedies, belonging to Comenius Genhard.

  Pandanum: a base metal used, inter alia, for less valuable coins.

  Pernia: The home country of Comenius Genhard, located in the northwestern area of the Central Continent.

  Polar ar’Tollis: the former Chief Mage of Nebara, now known as Fenris. He was condemned to death by the Federation after helping a human family escape execution.

  Prison Isle: an island in the middle of Solantha Bay that serves as a prison for Canalo’s worst criminals.

  Ragga, Elnos: Noria Melcott’s former boyfriend. He is a student at Solantha academy and one of the few mages who believes in equality amongst the races. He and Noria worked together to develop new magi-tech devices.

  Ragir, Lady Aria: wife to the High Mage of Castalis and First Lady of that country (since her marriage, styled Lady Aria Ragir ar’Rhea).

  Recca: the planet and world in which the Baine Chronicles takes place.

  Residah: the mages’ book of scripture that holds Resinah’s teachings.

  Resinah: also known as the First Mage, whose teachings are of paramount spiritual importance for the mages. Her statue can be found in the mage temples, which are off-limits to non-mages and magically hidden from outsiders.

  Resistance: a movement of revolutionaries planning to overthrow the mages and take control of the Northia Federation, financially backed by the Benefactor. Over time, they became bolder and more aggressive, using terrorist attacks with civilian casualties, as well as assassination. They even tried to take over Solantha, when the government was in disarray after they had engineered the Chief Mage’s disappearance. Sunaya’s discovery that the Benefactor and the human leaders of the Resistance were planning to turn against the shifters once the mages were defeated dealt a blow to the unity of the movement, but its human component is far from completely defeated, and working on “secret weapons.”

  ar’Rhea: family name of a noble Castalian family of mages, who trace their descent to the first mage Resinah through her daughter Miyanta.

  Rowanville: the only neighborhood of Solantha where all three races mix.

  Sandia: a large country (and subcontinent) of the Central Continent, populated by many different peoples.

  Serapha charms: paired charms that allow two people, usually a couple, to find each other via twinned stones imbued with a small part of their essence. Normally, only the wearer can take a serapha charm off.

  Shifter: a human who can change into animal form and back by magic; they originally resulted from illegal experiments by mages on ordinary humans.

  Shiftertown: the part of Solantha where the official shifter clans live.

  Solantha: the capital of Canalo State, a port city on the west coast of the Northia continent.

  Solantha Palace: the seat of power in Canalo, where both the Chief Mage and the Mages Guild reside. It is located near the coast of Solantha Bay.

  Thrase, Nelia: a young human woman who serves as Sunaya’s social secretary.

  Tillmore, Roanas: the former Shiftertown Inspector and father figure/mentor to Sunaya. He was poisoned while digging into the silver murders, prompting Sunaya to take over the investigation.

  Tua: a legendary and highly dangerous race of very long-lived beings with powerful magic, who sometimes cross from their own world into Recca, most frequently in Manuc.

  Ur-God: the humans’ version of the Creator. According to their scriptures, the Ur-God favors humans over all other races.

  Vanderheim, Curian: Thorgana Mills’s husband, a human millionaire and businessman. He went underground after Thorgana was imprisoned.

  Witches’ End: a pier in Solantha City, part of the Port, where immigrant magic users sell their wares and services.

  Zavian Graning: see under Graning, Zavian.

  Acknowledgments

  Thank you very much to my beta readers, particularly Victoria, Lenka, and Heather, for reading the early draft of Deceived by Magic and giving such helpful feedback. As usual, my beta readers always help turn my books from simply ‘good’ to ‘freaking awesome’. <3

  I’d also like to give a BIG thank you to my writing partner, Mary, for all the hard work you’ve done on this book. Your personal knowledge and travel experience in Asia really helped bring the setting for this story to life.

  Another thank you is owed to Cynthia Shepp, my copy-editor. It’s fantastic to have someone who’s not only reliable, but flexible and willing to accommodate my crazy schedule! The fact that you like my books is also a nice plus. ;)

  I’d also like to thank my author BFFs, Michael-Scott Earle and J.A. Cipriano, for making me laugh on a regular basis and being my comrades-in-arms, even if only behind the curtain. This is a crazy business we’re in, and I’m glad to have you guys on my side.

  And of course, I’d like to thank my AMAZING readers, who have stuck with me on this wild ride since day one. Sunaya’s journey has been crazy fun to write, and I’m glad you’re enjoying her story as much as I am!

  About the Author

  Jasmine Walt is obsessed with books, chocolate, and sharp objects. Somehow, those three things melded together in her head and transformed into a desire to write, usually fantastical stuff with a healthy dose of action and romance. Her characters are a little (okay, a lot) on the snarky side, and they swear, but they mean well. Even the villains sometimes.

  When Jasmine isn’t chained to her keyboard, you can find her practicing her triangle choke on the jujitsu mat, spending time with her family, or binge-watching superhero shows on Netflix.

  Want to connect with Jasmine? You can find her on Twitter at @jasmine_writes, on Instagram @jasmine.walt, on Facebook, or at www.jasminewalt.com. You can also shoot her an email at jasmine@jasminwalt.com.

  Also by Jasmine Walt

  The B
aine Chronicles Series

  Burned by Magic

  Bound by Magic

  Hunted by Magic

  Marked by Magic

  Betrayed by Magic

  Deceived by Magic

  Exposed by Magic—Coming Soon!

  The Baine Chronicles Novellas

  Tested by Magic

  Future titles to be announced!

  The Shadows of Salem Series

  Shadow Born

  Shadow Marked

  Shadow Hunted—Coming Soon!

  Collections and Anthologies:

  Magic and Mayhem: 21 Fantasy Novels by NY Times, USA Today and Internationally Bestselling Authors