by Ian Gregoire
“That’s right.”
“Well…?” coaxed Neryssa. “Don’t leave me in suspense, who is it?”
“Master Fay.”
From the wide-eyed look of disbelief on Neryssa’s face, Kayden had to assume her newest friend hadn’t anticipated her answer. “Is that really so hard to believe?” she asked.
“Yes…almost as unlikely as you calling her Master,” said the incredulous apprentice. “When did this start? I’ve never heard you refer to her as—”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah!” interrupted Kayden. “You’ve never heard me call her Master. I call her ‘the administrator’ or ‘Administrator Annis’ or ‘that woman’. Someone already mentioned that to me today.”
While Neryssa silently scrutinised her, she started to wonder if her roommate was deciding whether or not to believe the claim.
“This happened while the two of you were away?” queried Neryssa.
Kayden nodded with a smile.
“Then Master Fay is truly a miracle worker, in that case—to breach your impenetrable defences in just a single day.” There was nothing facetious about the way Neryssa spoke. “She is a remarkable woman.”
Kayden couldn’t argue with that. “More than you know,” she replied.
The expression on Neryssa’s face shifted again; a half smile slowly curled her lips. “Perhaps I shouldn’t be surprised by a friendship between the two of you. It actually makes a lot of sense now I that think about it,” she said. “Clearly, Master Fay sees something in you: a kindred spirit maybe. Someone capable of being her equal. She is a legend of the Order, and someday soon, you will join her, by becoming a legend of the Order, too.”
She didn’t quite know what to say to that, so she quietly resumed eating. It was obvious from Neryssa’s tone, she wasn’t engaging in flattery; she genuinely believed what she said. As for whether or not her words were true…
Only time would tell.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
The reclusive Ian Gregoire is a taciturn introvert residing somewhere in London, where he was born and raised. Of all life’s diversions, reading and writing are the only ones he ever deemed worthwhile enough to be passionate about. This eventually led to his belated decision to pursue his true calling in life as a fantasy and science fiction author. His debut novel, The Exercise Of Vital Powers, is just the first of many books he intends to inflict upon an unsuspecting world.
On the occasions he steps out of his reading and writing comfort zone, Ian has a fondness for computing, melancholy music, retro gaming, and Asian Cinema. Ian also loves peace and quiet, something that is in frustratingly short supply in his life.
To find out more about Ian visit his official website and be sure to sign up to his newsletter to be kept up to date with all his future publishing plans.
You can also follow Ian via his Blog, Facebook, Goodreads, Last.fm, Pinterest, Tumblr and Twitter
REQUEST FROM AUTHOR
I would like to make the following request to those of you who enjoyed The Exercise Of Vital Powers: please help spread the word so more readers may discover it. You can do this, first and foremost, by leaving a review and rating at Amazon and Goodreads. Don’t worry if you aren’t able to write a detailed, thousand word critique; it’s enough to simply state that you enjoyed the book.
In addition to the above, word of mouth remains one of the most effect forms of promotion, so please don’t shy away from recommending the book to family, friends and anyone else you know who might also enjoy The Exercise Of Vital Powers.