No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the author, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in reviews.
Written by D. L. Torrent
Cover design by George Patsouras
and Sharon Cramer
Publisher’s Note:
This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places, and events are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to real persons, places, or events is entirely coincidental.
Author’s Note:
For you, my reader…wake up and dream. It is my hope that this story will draw you away from reality and sink you deeply into a wonderful world of fantasy, allowing you to create a place in your mind and heart that only you can own.
For Sarah
My constant inspiration
…and occasional distraction
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Prologue
Chapter One: The Search
Chapter Two: The Book
Chapter Three: The Shredded Page
Chapter Four: A Visitor in the Night
Chapter Five: The Pile of Bones
Chapter Six: A Peculiar Meeting
Chapter Seven: Sira’s Report
Chapter Eight: The Lesson Learned
Chapter Nine: The Foiled Plan
Chapter Ten: The Valley
Chapter Eleven: The Barrier
Chapter Twelve: The Training Field
Chapter Thirteen: The Wait
Chapter Fourteen: Alone
Chapter Fifteen: The New Plan
Chapter Sixteen: The Shadow
Chapter Seventeen: Segrath
Chapter Eighteen: The Sly Suggestion
Chapter Nineteen: The Past Relived
Chapter Twenty: The Pathetic Village
Chapter Twenty-one: A Strange Assault
Chapter Twenty-two: The Stolen Stone
Chapter Twenty-three: The Minion’s Hold
Chapter Twenty-four: The Diversion
Chapter Twenty-five: The Decision
Chapter Twenty-six: The Lie
Chapter Twenty-seven: The Valley of Wizards
Chapter Twenty-eight: Success
Chapter Twenty-nine: Leaving the Valley
Chapter Thirty: The Arrival
Chapter Thirty-one: The Hidden Journey
Chapter Thirty-two: Brandon
Chapter Thirty-three: The Battle
Chapter Thirty-four: Prydon
Chapter Thirty-five: Home
Prologue
The cold wind bit at her face, and the falling snow clouded her view. Frozen tears stung her cheeks, and she stumbled on a branch hidden in the blanket of snow beneath her feet. She whimpered and began to cry, adding to the ice sculptures that were already clinging to her eyelashes. She bowed her head, thinking of what she had left behind, but it was too painful.
Blinking hard to break the crystal curtains around her eyes, she saw a flicker of light in the distance. She plodded forward, gathering what strength she could, and headed for the only glimmer of hope she had left.
When she reached the small inn, she entered quietly. The warmth around her caused her face to sting, but she welcomed the pain to the coldness of outside. The soft bundle she carried squirmed in her arms as she placed a golden wedding band upon the counter. Tears filled her swollen eyes as she smiled yearningly at the innkeeper.
“It’s all I have,” the woman said softly.
Chapter One
The Search
Klavon sat amidst the destruction, fire burning in his heart as vivid as the fires that blazed around him. He stared at the dead body, a pool of blood the blanket for his enemy. But he could not revel in his victory…she was gone.