apparel of a True Way Patriarch, the band of chains around his chest and waist clanking as he moved. She immediately felt a lurching sensation in her stomach.
“Who I am is of no consequence,” the Patriarch responded as he came to a stop before them. In common with most other Patriarchs Eladria had seen, his blue-tinged face was pale and expressionless and his eyes empty and deadened. “I am but an instrument, a servant of the mighty Antas, the True God of Tahnadra. I live only that I may glorify his name and carry out his divine will.”
“What are you doing here?” Eladria asked.
“Just as you were led here, so too was I,” the Patriarch replied.
“What-what you want with us?” Janak asked weakly.
“You will come with me back to the sacred town of Arnaast,” the man answered.
“We’re not going anywhere with you,” Eladria said forcefully.
“But you are, Princess Eladria,” the Patriarch responded darkly. He smiled at Eladria’s visible alarm at knowing she had been recognized. “Yes, I know who you are. The mighty Antas said you would be here, on the run from the Ha’shon and desperately trying to stop the resurrection from happening. But you will never stop what is destined to be. Indeed, you will be an important part of it.”
“I don’t know what you are talking about,” Eladria growled.
“No matter. You will soon learn of what I speak.” The Patriarch closed his eyes, raised his staff and began to chant strange words that Eladria had never before heard.
“Beware, he’s casting an incantation,” Van’garat warned.
Eladria stepped forward and raised her dagger. “Stop!” she shouted.
The Patriarch continued, ignoring her. The words poured from his mouth like an obscure song from an ancient, long-forgotten world.
Eladria was prepared to stop him with physical force, but before she could act the Patriarch snapped open his eyes and raised his staff. From the tip of the staff, a burst of energy shot outward, encircling her, Janak and Van’garat in a ring of black fire. The crackling black flames closed in on them like a lasso, coiling around their bodies in a snake-like manner. The black fire was cold to the touch yet tingled with electrical charge.
Eladria and her comrades struggled to break free but, like the arachoid web, it had them completely incapacitated.
She looked helplessly at Van’garat and Janak who were pinned next to her. The three of them were like helpless animals caught in a hunter’s trap. They couldn’t fight and there was no way to escape.
[Continued in the novel "Eladria" by Rory B Mackay]
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rory was born in Glasgow, Scotland in 1979. Since then he has lived most of his life in the north-east of Scotland, a place he finds scenic and inspiring, if a tad cold. With a lifelong passion for creative writing and art, Rory knew from a young age that he had stories he wanted to tell and adventures to share. As he grew up and became interested in philosophy and metaphysics, he came to realize the potential of literature and art as a means of sharing ideas, posing questions and exploring the nature of reality in a way that is accessible yet compelling and challenging.
Rory conceived his series of fantasy novels, The Alanar Ascendant, when he was still in high school, developing a vast and expansive mythology that offers the potential for dozens of stories. Little direct progress was made on the books themselves during this period, as he focused on his education: studying fine art, before graduating with a degree in social science. A long period of ill health brought him back to his true passion as a creative storyteller, leading him to explore the potential of fiction and art to elevate mood and consciousness. Rory has now completed the first two novels of The Alanar Ascendant series. Action-packed, emotionally charged and cinematic in scope, the books are essentially stories about life: explorations of life, death, reality, purpose and identity.
A natural born philosopher and a student of Vedanta, Zen and Taoism, Rory is an animal and nature lover, music junkie (known to create his own music too -- including a soundtrack to his novel), social and environmental activist, cake enthusiast and generally a rather chilled out guy. He sells his art online and writes blogs on creativity, philosophy, spirituality and whatever else inspires him. He has written his own commentary on the classic Chinese text, the Tao Te Ching and is planning a non-fiction book entitled ‘Beyond the Dream’ as well as a new series of fantasy books called 'The Dreamlight Fugitives'. His debut novel 'Eladria' was published in May 2013 by Cosmic Egg Books. He has also released two free short stories ('Artan’s Night' and 'The Royal Runaway') as preludes. For more information and updates, please visit his website at https://www.dreamlight-fugitive.co.uk or his regularly updated blog at https://beyondthedream.co.uk.
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