The Channel (The Gifted Book 2) (42 page)

Gaibel and the commander brushed past Rhea and engaged the last two guards.

Rhea, after seeing that Gaibel and the commander were taking care of the other guards, she turned to Daen. "I'm going down to look for our
troublemaker
."

Daen, who'd just finished taking out the guard who'd attacked him, stepped towards the stairs. "I'm going with you." He turned to Gaibel and the commander to see if they would object, but they waved him on.

As Daen and Rhea reached the main level, they were greeted by the ninth guard, the dark-haired man's right hand. He was standing in front of the library door, ready to go in when he saw Rhea and Daen reach the main level landing to his right.

He was just as startled as they were, but that didn't last. He extended his hand towards Rhea and Daen, but nothing happened. Or, at least, that was Rhea's thought at first. Within a few seconds, her skin started to sting. She started to feel weak.
What was happening to her?

Daen threw an energy ball, but the man just absorbed it.

Daen's words came back to her. She remembered how he taught her about pulling energy from a person and how it felt. That's what was happening. The man standing before them was pulling her energy.

Needing to stop him, she reached out to the man and pulled at his energy, trying to get back what he'd taken from her. Although she could imagine him growing weak, it wasn't enough. He was pulling harder than she was.

Daen dropped to his knees, his body trembling, fighting to stay upright. He gritted his teeth at the pain that was now riddling his body. "Don't ... hold ... back."

Rhea glanced down at Daen. The man was killing him. Her fury returned. "No!" She pulled with all her might, but that wasn't enough. She had to do something or Daen would be gone.

She called for the Libraim, and it was there for her. Her voice echoed in her ears. "Die!" She immediately felt the man's energy course through her body, the pain associated with taking a person's life burned her fingers, her hands, as it worked its way into her chest.

The man's face went from a rabid sneer to shock and pain. Rhea placed her hand on Daen's head as he leaned against her leg. She pushed the energy she was taking from the man into Daen, returning what was rightfully his.

The man continued to fight, continued to reach for Daen's and Rhea's energy, but he couldn't hold out against the power that Rhea had unleashed. The stinging sensations that had pulsed through her body eased as the man grew old in front of her. His arm dropped to his side and his face went blank as he stared at nothing.

Rhea stopped her pull and watched in horror as the man shriveled before her eyes like a dried piece of fruit. Before she had a chance to totally freak out, Daen was on his feet and turned her around, holding her face to his chest. "Don't look."

Rhea trembled uncontrollably as the tears fell against his chest. "Oh, my gosh! What have I done?"

She'd killed before in self-defense but this felt different. She'd felt the man's life energy course through her body. She shuddered as she struggled to deal with what had just happened but she couldn't. Not this time.

"Shh."

"Daen!" Rhea cried into his chest, pleading for him to make it right.

He pushed her away but held her by her shoulders, trying to make her look at him. "You saved me and yourself. You had no choice. His only goal was to kill us." He pulled Rhea tight to his chest again while she sobbed.

As the sobs slowed, her body started to heave uncontrollably. "I'm going to be sick." She pulled away from Daen's embrace just in time to lose the contents of her stomach.

Rhea could hear footsteps on the stairs, between her retching, and tried to scramble to her feet, not knowing what was coming.

"Rhea, it's me." Gaibel's voice rang in her ears as her hands took Rhea's shoulders. Gaibel looked at Daen. "I'll stay with her. You go check on the others."

Commander Naylor ran down the stairs just a Daen turned to leave the stairway landing. He motioned for Naylor to follow him and they were gone.

Gaibel pulled Rhea into her arms as she glanced at the scene, trying to understand what had just happened. She stroked her daughter's hair. "Shh."

After a moment, Rhea pulled away as Gaibel tried to keep her from seeing the body lying close by. "Don't look."

Rhea had to look. She had to accept what she'd done. He was a killer and it was self-defense. Rhea stared down at the body and shuddered as she formed a shield over her heart and the anger returned. She wanted the senseless killing to stop. "Come on. Let's go get the other one."

Gaibel and Rhea reached the kitchen in time to see the door open and Kalaub enter. The look on his face was one of fear and excitement all at once. He stopped when he saw them, as did they. There was a moment, like time suspended, when the world felt right.

Gaibel whispered, not wanting to wake from the dream she knew she must be having. "Kalaub."

Kalaub's eyes locked onto Gaibel, and she knew she wasn't dreaming.

Gaibel dropped Rhea's hand and ran into his arms.

"Gaibel!" He took her into his arms, pulled her close, and kissed her as if he were trying to recapture all their lost years together.

Rhea watched as more tears ran down her cheeks, tears of joy. She was happy for them.

Kalaub slowly released Gaibel and looked over her should at Rhea. "My guardian angel."

Gaibel pulled back and looked at Rhea. "She's more than that. She's your daughter."

Rhea knew it to be true, but hearing Gaibel say it was unbelievable. She stepped into their arms and let them embrace her, finally forming the family they should have been all along.

Rhea only allowed herself a moment before she pulled back and said, "We still have one more to deal with." And she was out the door.

Rhea stepped from the kitchen to find the others talking to the prisoners. She waved to her fellow rescuers. "This way." She ran towards the path behind the barn. She could hear footsteps behind her as she approached the wooden door in the side the cliff. She didn't stop to open the door. Instead, she blasted it off its hinges and ran inside, followed by everyone else.

There, standing by the liquid window, which wasn't liquid anymore, was the dark-haired man.

Rhea breathed hard as she took him in, anger pulsing through her. "It's over."

He just laughed. "It's only just begun." He swept his hand over the table and then the wall, before stepping through the window. In an instant, the room on the other side of the window disappeared and the opening turned a flat solid white.

Rhea tried to run after him, but the hands of her companions stopped her. She struggled to free herself. "Don't! He's getting away!"

Taulin's voice stood out above them all. "Rhea! Another time."

Rhea stopped her efforts to chase after the man who'd caused so much trouble, the man responsible for hurting so many people. There was no way to follow him … yet. But she would find a way.

Thank You!

Thank you for reading The Guardian. I hope you enjoyed it.

The Gifted

The Guardian

The Channel

The Dark Healer

The Keeper

Learn more at
http://luxatra.com

~~~

The Dark Healer

The Gifted Book 3

Sneek Peek

1
Perspective

Mani stopped mid-stride, his breath caught in his throat. The scene unfolding in front of him couldn't be happening. Four guards lay lifeless on the ground and armed men and women were entering his home—Pelyn's home.

Spinning around, Mani ran back to the cave where his childhood friend waited for him. His heart raced, his breathing quickened, as he debated on what he would say.

Pelyn looked up from the table where he was unrolling a map. "That was ..." His smile faded as he looked into Mani's wide eyes. "What's happened?"

"We are being ..." He struggled to take a breath. "We are being invaded. The guards are dead."

Pelyn straightened his back, his jaw clenched as he tried to understand what Mani was telling him. "That's not possible."

"It's true. We have to get out of here. Now."

"Nonsense." Pelyn stepped towards the door that protected the cave from island predators. "I will put an end to this."

Mani grabbed his sleeve. "No. We don't know how many there are."

"We are on a small island in the middle of the ocean. It's likely pirates. They will be easy enough to deal with."

Mani gripped Pelyn's shirt tighter. "You can't risk it. I can't risk losing you too."

Pelyn studied the man's face and saw a lifetime of agony in his eyes. "Nothing will happen to me."

"That's what she said, remember?"

How could he not? She had been Mani's sister, Daunal, and Pelyn's wife. Pelyn glanced towards the open door and then back to Mani. "I need the current journal from my room."

"I'll go. You get the portal ready." Mani ran from the cave before Pelyn could stop him.

Pelyn followed him to the door and watched as he disappeared around a curve in the trail. He knew Mani was right. It would take time to call the opening in the portal.

Returning to the stone table in the center of the cave, he started to prepare their escape route.

~~~

Mani slowed as he approached the garden separating him from the house. Unfamiliar voices reach his ears. He slipped behind a tree and scanned the garden. The men and women he and Pelyn held captive were talking to a woman, a stranger.

She turned suddenly, as if to circle around the house. "I'll be right back. I promise," she shouted over her shoulder. "I just have to show the others where we are."

Others? Mani cringed. If he didn't get Pelyn's journal before the others arrived, there would be no hope. Moreover, knowing Pelyn, he'd likely do something stupid, like trying to retrieve it himself.

With the way clear of intruders, he stepped from behind the tree and stormed towards the house. Several of the men and women who had been at his and Pelyn's mercy for years, cowered away from him, afraid of his touch. One sneered, his bravery starting to surface.

Mani glared at the man as he reached towards him, but quickly shook off his desire.

The man stepped forward in defiance but stumbled to his knees.

Mani just shook his head and passed over the threshold into the kitchen, heading for the hall leading to Pelyn's quarters. The library was just beyond that.

The sound of blades clashing against blades told him the intruders were above him, fighting the guards who had just come off the night patrol. Good. He had time.

As he reached end of the hall, he heard the trample of boots descending the stone stairs. He flattened himself against the wall, just as a tall blond woman came into view.

The light from the narrow window in the stairwell highlighted the gold and silver streaks in her hair. Her light green eyes appeared ghostly against her bronze skin. It was as if time stood still as he took in her beauty, her power. He could feel it radiating from her and he knew whom she was.

He stepped away from the wall, revealing himself, and reached for her energy. The stinging sensation that accompanied the taking of a life force ripped up his arm. The pain was worth it. The power was overwhelming.

Her expression was one of shock. He had her.

From the corner of his eye, he glimpsed an armed man descending the stairs behind the woman, the crest on his leather-armored vest announcing his position: the channel’s guardian, her protector.

Mani’s other hand shot forward, the corners of his mouth curved upward as he reached for the guardian’s energy as well. It had been a long time since he'd pulled the life from two people simultaneously, but the reward would be worth the pain.

Her guardian fell to his knees, no longer her mighty protector. His sword slipped from his hand. He cried out as he struggled to keep himself upright. His life energy slipped from his body.

Mani opened his mouth to laugh but was cut off by a sensation he never thought to feel. He watched, stunned, as the channel raised her hands and started to pull.

Panic threatened his focus. She shouldn't have been able to fight back. She was too new to her gift.

Determined to win, to have the prize, he focused on just the channel, but he was too late. The sensation of energy entering his body began to fade.

He watched in horror as the channel's aura erupted in a swirling mass of colors, almost blinding to one gifted to see, as he was. Her eyes narrowed as she lowered one of her hands, resting it on the guardian's head as he leaned against her thigh.

Mani stepped closer to the channel, desperately struggling to regain the energy he’d stolen and prevent his own from being taken.

The channel’s colors swirled faster, brighter. Her jaw clenched as her hand trembled.

Mani gasped as the battle turned in the channel’s favor, leaving him with an overwhelming feeling of loss.

So this was what it was like, he thought. His body trembled and in a matter of seconds, his world went dark.

~~~

Pelyn moved quickly, placing the first diamond in the alcove next to the portal window, turning its solid white surface to a mass of swirling clouds.

He moved around the table to face the portal and laid two diamonds on the map etched into the smooth shiny surface. One diamond positioned on the small island centered between the lands of Libritas and Terranees and the other on the center of Terranees.

His eyes fixed on the swirling clouds and he spoke the ancient spell, "
Ishba duncoon alzebar
." He maneuvered the second diamond until the swirling clouds cleared to reveal another portal cave, just like the one in which he stood.

The scene was like looking through an open window. All he had to do was step through and he would be off his island and into the heart of Terranees, the land of the domains, known for its wars and civil rulers, each one greedy for what the other had. With only two domains remaining, Terranees was ready for his leadership.