Sentinels of creation a.., p.1
Sentinels of Creation: A Scion of Amber Light, page 1
Contents
Series Page
Title Page
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
Author's Note
Author’s Bio
Sentinels of Creation
Sentinels of Creation
A Scion of Amber Light
Robert W. Ross
This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or to actual events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Copyright © 2021 Robert Ross
All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portions thereof, in any form. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, or stored in any form, whether electronic or mechanical without the express written permission of the author or an authorized agent of Spartamac Publishing, LLC. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or other means without the permission of the publisher is illegal and punishable by law. Please purchase only authorized electronic editions and do not participate in, or encourage, electronic piracy of copyrighted materials.
ISBN-13: 979-8663620918
Spartamac Publishing
Atlanta, Georgia
www.spartamac.com
I wish to thank my wonderfully sadistic Alpha readers without whose ruthless critique this book would not be readable. Given their complete lack of social graces, I understand why they wish to remain anonymous.
I would also like to thank all of my Beta readers for their thoughtful insights, suggestions, and corrections. I appreciate you all! Special thanks go out to Keith, Mike, Nick, and Tim for going above and beyond!
Cover Illustration by George Patsouras
To all those for whom the year 2020 brought fear, pain, uncertainty, and loss. May this new year bring joy, comfort, confidence, and restoration in far greater abundance.
Chapter 1
Prologue
Aibreann shivered. The young Irishwoman’s breath formed a cone of mist as she pulled the fur cloak more tightly around her. The sun hadn’t yet fully risen above the horizon, and the distant waves glittered with golden light. A sound like dozens of flapping wings came from behind Aibreann, and she turned to see a dark cloud form before her.
It roiled, pulsed, then broke apart into dozens of black ravens. Seconds later they cawed loudly, and took wing in countless different directions. A tall man in his late middle years stood silently where the ravens had been moments before. He wore a long, voluminous, robe of an almost iridescent blue. Golden embroidered symbols shaped like moons and stars caught the early morning light. The man stepped forward and his gnarled staff of polished black wood clicked against a stone as he did so.
Aibreann felt her stomach twist, but she lifted her chin and stared defiantly at the newcomer. Her dark brown eyes met the ice blue of his and the two stared at each other for several heartbeats. Finally, the man said, “You should leave him while you still can.”
“No,” she replied, her voice thick with the accent of her native island.
“You do not know who or what he is.”
“I know I love him and he loves me. That is enough.”
“Child,” said the man, “he is incapable of love. You are a momentary dalliance, nothing more.”
Aibreann’s lips curved up in a sly grin as she pretended to look past the man, first left, then right. “Are you so adept in the ways of love, then, Master Merlin? I see no woman beside you. Perhaps she is at home with a leanbh at breast. Surely you must be an expert at all things hearth and home. How else could you presume to lecture me?”
Merlin drew his lips to a line, and then opened his mouth to speak. Aibreann lifted her hands to her face in mock astonishment. “But wait,” she cried, “you are a druid and druids are sworn to neither take a wife or sire a leanbh. Or, great Merlin, am I mistook in this?”
The wizard sighed deeply. “You are not mistook, as you well know. However, one does not need to experience a thing to know a thing. The dragon has warned me that your, so called, love will lead to wrack and ruin. Not just for you, child, but for the world entire. One last time I ask, let me take you from this place. Give him up.”
“I will not!” she yelled. “You don’t know him as I do. Though he refuses to speak of it, I know he’s been broken and abandoned. Three times he thought I would abandon him as well. Three times I saw the dark angel that lives within him come forth in anger. Three times I soothed it back, and three times I remained. I will not betray him for if I did, I fear he would be lost in darkness and chaos forever.”
Merlin cocked his head as if hearing a distant threat, then turned to regard the small circle of standing stones. He gestured to them and murmured words she could not hear. The wizard glanced over his shoulder and said, “Aibreann, if you will not take my counsel, will you at least accept my protection?”
He began walking toward the circle and she slowly trailed after him. When they both had reached the outer edge he, again, turned to face her. Merlin’s face held none of the stern lines she’d seen only moments before. Now his eyes seemed filled with a strange mix of sadness and concern. He sighed. “What I tell you now, Aibreann O’Conagan, is not to dissuade you from your chosen path, but to provide what aid I am able as you stride it. Your choice will affect those who have millennia before their birth. The dragon has shown me the end of all things and there is but one narrow path that avoids it.” He smiled at her, then said, “This, is the path you have chosen. The dragon’s breath burns within you just as it does within me. Take my hand and join me in the circle where the veil between worlds is thinest. I will show you what the dragon has shown me. The two of us will ask him to bathe you in a protective fire that will warm your soul in the dark and cold that is destined to come upon you.”
Aibreann trembled with both cold and fear, but her voice remained steady. “Will your dragon ask me to forsake my love?”
Merlin shook his head. “No, it is your decision to remain true to your promise. Truth be told, it is that very promise that has procured for this world its one chance and hope for survival.”
“Then lead on wizard, I will follow.”
Merlin reached out his hand and Aibreann placed hers in his. They walked between two imposing sentry stones that rose at least forty feet. As they did so the air shimmered around both of them and Aibreann felt her ears pop. She turned to look over her shoulder and saw the air wobble between the stones as if she were viewing the world through a sheet of malformed glass.
The wizard released Aibreann and walked to the circle’s center where a large slab rested on four small pillars to form a rustic altar. She watched as he slipped an ornate blade from within the folds of his robe. Merlin gestured with the knife and Aibreann moved to stand beside him.
“Prepare yourself,” the wizard intoned, “for I summon the dragon. Were you to see its power, whole and untempered, it would burn you to cinders. Even the sliver I now share may bring visions from days long gone or those to come. Past, present, and future are all the same to the dragon for it sees time laid out as a quilt.” Merlin pointed the dagger at Aibreann and she flinched as he said, “Are you absolutely sure this is the path you wish to walk? Once I rouse the dragon, there will be no turning back for you. All those who gaze upon him are forever changed and not necessarily for the better.”
Aibreann lifted her chin defiantly. “I will not give him up. Bring on your dragon, wizard. I am not afeared.”
Merlin nodded and drew the blade across his palm, then locked eyes with the young woman as he whispered, “You should be, child. You should be.” Drops of scarlet pattered on the stone slab, then puffed away. A breeze stirred within the circle and grew in strength until Aibreann’s long black hair whipped around her. “Behold, he comes,” yelled Merlin. “The dragon. He comes.”
Motes of amber light danced around the wizard and twisted into cords of energy. Those cords undulated and turned until finally they formed a massive serpentine head with golden eyes that burned like flame. Aibreann felt her blood run cold and she took a step back from the apparition. Merlin lashed out his hand and the dragon streaked forward enclosing both wizard and woman within its massive jaws.
Aibreann screamed in terror as Merlin tightened his grip on her. The world shattered around them and she found herself standing on a mountain-top surrounded by swirls of distant light. “Where…where are we? I’ve never seen so many stars.”
“The void between worlds, and those are not stars,” said Merlin softly.
“Not stars,” she asked in wonder, “then what…”
“I have already told you. We are in the void between worlds. Each swirl of light you see consists of worlds nearly without end.” He pointed to the closest one and she saw it pulse and grow in size. “That is ours. Everything we are or ever will be is contained within that single swirl of light. That, Aibreann is our universe.”
She stared off and gestured. “What of those?”
Merlin smiled, “As I said, worlds and worlds without end.” His words still hung in the air when the ground beneath them rumbled. Aibreann reached out to steady herself and felt the wizard’s reassuring grip.
“What is that?” she asked as they drew near a previously distant swirl. “What is happening to it?” Aibreann turned to see tears fill Merlin’s eyes and begin to flow down his cheeks. “I feel cold,” she said, and turned back as the swirl dimmed further.
“Perditor,” whispered Merlin, “the destroyer of all things has breached that universe, Aibreann.”
“No!” she yelled, “I feel it. I feel them dying. Billions of souls crying out and—” she sucked in a breath, then fell to her knees. “Silence. Silence and darkness, but you said worlds without end, Merlin.”
The wizard knelt beside her as the last vestiges of light faded from the universe nearest them. “Worlds without end, Aibreann, but not worlds that do not end.” He rose and pulled her to her feet. “You will need all your courage now, child. Cleave to me and do not let go.”
“Why, what is—” Aibreann broke off as a dark cloud of inky blackness detached itself from the dying universe and streaked toward them.
She stiffened and Merlin said, “Be brave, Aibreann, he cannot harm us here. Our world remains closed to him.”
“Oh my God,” she cried as the darkness drew close and buffeted them.
“Who are you?” said Perditor in a voice devoid of emotion. “How came you to be in this place?” Several seconds passed and Perditor continued, “Ahh, I see. You are not here but are cloaked in raw Creation. Did He teach you this? If you are not here, then where are you?” The darkness receded, and they watched as Perditor streaked toward their home universe only to be repulsed by a burst a violet energy. The malevolent presence returned a moment later and Perditor said, “My Emissary will forge a gate to this world. Creation cannot prevail against—” Perditor paused, and Aibreann felt his focus shift to her. “You,” he said, “You could alter Chaos and must not remain for my intentions to be realized. The Emissary will remove you to the void, Chaos will remain unaltered, and the gate will open. You have no chance.”
“We have one chance,” replied Merlin, “and that one chance scares you, doesn’t it, Perditor?”
The silence stretched longer this time, then Perditor asked, “What chance is that?”
Merlin smiled. “The Sentinels of Creation.”
Perditor buffeted them with waves of anger as Aibreann felt Merlin’s hand squeeze hers and the void faded.
She opened her eyes on the stone circle, then turned to face the wizard. “Who…what was that?” She looked down and saw amber light radiating from her hands. “What’s happening to me?”
“You have been infused with the Dragon’s breath,” said Merlin softly. “As for what we saw within the void, that was Perditor. He is the very incarnation of destruction, and I believe you are the only other living person who knows his name.”
Aibreann’s eyes grew wide. “The dragon’s breath? But you said it was the source of your power. I am no wizard.”
“No,” he replied softly, “you are not. The dragon will not obey your commands as he does mine, but he will tether you to this world when Perditor’s emissary comes for you.”
The implication of Merlin’s words struck home and Aibreann covered her mouth with a hand. “He’s coming for me because of Lucien…because I would not give him up?” The wizard nodded and she shook her head as tears welled in her eyes. “But why? He’s just a man and I’m just—”
Merlin lifted her hands and kissed them gently. “You know he’s not just a man, and now you are more than a woman. You tether him to a humanity he’s never known even as the dragon now tethers you to a world Lucien will hate because of your absence.”
“He promised we would always be together,” cried Aibreann. “He promised and I could almost see his words take form. He wasn’t lying. I know he wasn’t.”
“He wasn’t lying,” Merlin agreed.
Her tears were flowing freely now. “He took me to wife, wizard. I wanted to find a priest, but he said his promise would bind us more tightly than ever a churchly vow could do.” She looked down and whispered, “I lay with him. I—”
Merlin slipped his hand free and rested it on her waist. “You have conceived a daughter together, and her daughter’s, daughter’s, daughter will help procure the one chance and hope this world has to remain sealed from Perditor.” The wizard’s eyes slipped off Aibreann’s as he looked over her shoulder. She watched Merlin’s face lose expression and his voice took on a prophetic cadence as he said, “Creation’s love has barred the gate Destruction rends with endless hate. The first who fell from boundless pride can be redeemed by faithful bride. A prodigal joins with Order’s constancy to make clear the path for perdition’s progeny. Eyes that blaze with amber light and wings unfurled as dark as night.”
Merlin reached up and gripped her shoulders. “Be brave now child, your husband comes. He will not see you for we remain within the dragon’s den. However, you will see him and no glamor can shield your eyes now that the dragon has opened them.”
“Aibreann? Aibreann, where are you?” The girl stiffened and stared up at Merlin with wild eyes, then slowly turned toward the voice. Lucifer stood wreathed in ribbons of scarlet energy that pulsed around him. Delicate interlocking scales covered every inch of his exposed skin and massive black wings lay folded tightly down his back.
A sob broke unbidden from her mouth and Merlin leaned close. “He is still the same as he was last night when you promised yourselves to each other. He was then as you see now, just cloaked in a glamour your mortal eyes could not pierce.” She shivered and the wizard said, “But while you’ve been forever changed by the Dragon’s touch, you need not go to him. I could spirit us away and you would never—”
Aibreann whirled on the wizard, her eyes flashing with amber fury. “You would have me forsake him, Merlin? He has done nothing but treat me with love and kindness. You say he is also father to my unborn leanbh. If I am to be driven from this world, who will watch over her? Who will keep her safe if not for him?” Aibreann turned and watched Lucifer as he continued to approach the circle and call her name. She smiled sadly and asked, “How long will we have together?”
Merlin’s words were so soft that an errant breeze would have carried them off. “When the first snow falls three years hence, the Emissary will come for you.”
“Time enough,” she said.
Merlin arched an eyebrow questioningly. “Time enough for what, Aibreann?”
She did not turn to answer but lifted her chin as she walked toward the circle’s boundary. “Time enough for love, wizard. Time enough for love.”
Aibreann felt her skin tingle as she passed beyond the circle’s boundary. She took another step and a twig cracked beneath her boot.
“Aibreann!” yelled Lucifer with obvious relief as he rushed to her side. “Aibreann, oh Aibreann you were lost to me. I couldn’t find you anywhere and —”
She smiled and pointed behind her. “I was just there, Lucien, by the stones. Didn’t you see me there?”
The devil narrowed his eyes at the circle. “No, I did not see you there. It felt like you were gone from the world.”
Aibreann placed a soft kiss on his cheek, but gave no sign that her lips brushed scales rather than skin. “Gone from the world,” she laughed, “Lucien O'Dochartaigh, what a funny thing to say.” She glanced back at the circle and locked eyes with Merlin for a beat, then said, “Come, husband. Time is precious so let’s not waste another moment apart.”
