The Shadow Shifter

by Dahlia Leigh

  Copyrighted Material

  Copyright © 2018 by Olivia Ash.

  Cover and art copyright © 2018 by Amalia Chitulescu

  Book design and layout copyright © 2018 by Olivia Ash.

  This novel is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either products of the author’s imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events, locales, or persons, living, dead, or undead, is entirely coincidental.

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this publication can be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without permission in writing from S. M. Boyce, L. L. C.

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  Books by Dahlia Leigh and Olivia Ash

  Sentinel Saga

  The Shadow Shifter

  The Demon Prince

  The Rogue Alchemist

  Books by Olivia Ash

  Nighthelm Academy

  City of the Sleeping Gods

  City of Fractured Souls

  City of the Enchanted Queen

  Demon Queen Saga

  Princes of the Underworld

  Wars of the Underworld

  Mistress of the Underworld

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  The Shadow Shifter

  Book One of the Sentinel Saga

  Dahlia Leigh

  Olivia Ash

  Wispvine Publishing

  Book Description

  The talking Castle of Asteroth is a place of ancient magic—and it’s dying. Ashlynn is its sole inhabitant and the only one who can restore its power.

  Raised from birth to fight the supernatural monsters that live in the Void, Ash is the Sentinel—her world’s last defense against the blood-sucking creatures who would devour everything and everyone in their path.

  But not even the Sentinel can fight alone.

  Begrudgingly, Ash allows three men chosen by the castle to compete for the right to fight at her side—a shifty demon, a rogue alchemist, and a devastatingly dark shifter prince. These are dangerous men, full of more raw magic and power than Ash has ever seen, and she can’t, for the life of her, understand why the castle allowed any of them inside.

  The catch? These three men all want one thing. Her.

  Edmund, Darien, and Taegen all have more at stake than they let on. None of them can lose this contest, and one thing is clear: the only way to win a place in the castle is to also win Ash’s heart.

  Through blood, war, or treason, each man will do anything to claim her as his own. Anything.

  What should have been an easy choice becomes impossible, and as the castle begins to crumble around them, the creatures of the Void smell blood. They’re coming for Ash, for her men, and for her home.

  But Ash is a fighter. Come hell or high water, she’ll defend what belongs to her with her life.

  The Shadow Shifter is a full-length, slow burn, reverse harem novel. Get ready for a spellbinding story, one badass heroine, three smokin’ hot men, a charming nerd, toned muscles, fights to the death, and edge-of-your-seat action.

  Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  Chapter Twenty-Nine

  Chapter Thirty

  Chapter Thirty-One

  Chapter Thirty-Two

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Chapter Thirty-Five

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  Chapter Thirty-Eight

  Chapter Thirty-Nine

  Chapter Forty

  Chapter Forty-One

  Chapter Forty-Two

  Chapter Forty-Three

  Chapter Forty-Four

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Chapter Forty-Six

  Chapter Forty-Seven

  Chapter Forty-Eight

  Chapter Forty-Nine

  Epilogue

  You’re Missing Out…

  About the Authors

  Chapter One

  Ashlynn

  Surrounded by darkness, standing in the center of a spotlight, Ashlynn awaited her trial.

  She had trained for this chance her entire life. She was ready. Her destiny to become the last Sentinel of Asteroth Castle depended on this moment.

  Pass or fail, everything came down to this last battle.

  Her duty to protect the castle and guard the veil from the demons of the Void had been etched on her soul. Her mother had been queen of the castle before her untimely death, and Ashlynn was next in line.

  Clothed in various leathers, her favorite battle garb, and equipped with her preferred weapons—a sword and dagger—she was ready to face her future.

  “Kneel, Ashlynn of the royal line of Sentinels,” a deep voice echoed through the darkness. It boomed, deafening and mighty, and she jumped a bit at the sudden noise even though she recognized the voice.

  Ashlynn rolled her eyes at her long-time friend and constant companion’s theatrics. “Asteroth, could we just get on with this? There’s no one even here to witness the trial.”

  “I have been waiting a long time for this moment. Your mother asked me to raise you and prepare you for your future, should you choose to accept it. Please allow me this.” His voice was oddly more formal than she was used to, indicating the seriousness of the moment.

  Silence followed for a moment at the tragic reminder of her mother. Asteroth had done well. He raised and trained her the best he was able for a magical, talking castle. Long ago, the castle had been created by powerful magic to shield and protect the veil, a sealed gateway that kept the horde of demons and dark creatures from breaking through from the world below called the Void. So much magic went into shaping and forming the castle, it had become sentient.

  Wrapping her long, wavy, red hair on top of her head, she nodded and then lowered herself to the stone floor. “Please continue.”

  He cleared his throat. “As I was saying… The time has come for you to choose your destiny. You have trained as none other before. You have dedicated your life to the protection of this castle and the veil, separating the world from the entrance to the Void below. You have learned your innate magic and studied the monsters and creatures of this world, as well as
those of the deep. Now is the time to take the next step. Should you so choose to move forward in this calling as the last Sentinel of Asteroth Castle, you will begin the trial to test your technique and ability to fight, your strength of mind for quick decisions, and your knowledge of various evil creatures from the dark.”

  Ashlynn tipped her head, listening to all that would be required of her. Asteroth continued speaking before she said anything.

  “Should you take this final trial in your training, you will receive, as your reward, the secret knowledge passed down from Sentinel Queen to her successor. You will take the steps in gaining the fullness of your power as the next Sentinel Queen as you continue to grow in those new abilities and powers. There has only ever been one Sentinel Queen chosen in each generation of Sentinels. You, Ashlynn, have been chosen, but the decision is yours.”

  Instinctively, Ashlynn stood a little straighter. In the past, the castle had been filled with Sentinels—women charged with protecting a castle and keeping the veil secure—and their army of teams. There were five castles around the world with the same purpose and calling, each governed by a lead Sentinel. However, Asteroth was the first and strongest castle, and so the queen of all the Sentinels and armies reigned there. If there were no more Sentinels, the castle would fade and the veil would collapse. Demons, and all manner of dark creatures, would flee the Void, take over humanity, destroying the world as they knew it.

  Ashlynn breathed deep and closed her bright blue eyes, taking in all Asteroth had spoken to her, weighing the risks with the benefits. Yes, she had trained and prepared all her life for this. But she knew the choice had always been hers to make. The castle had been her only home. Asteroth was the only family she remembered. She had made her decision long ago, and she didn’t wish to change it.

  “I choose to be the Sentinel Queen, should I be fortunate enough to gain her powers. I choose to protect the castle and guard the gateway from the Void.”

  An oddly timed cheer erupted from the ominous voice in the darkness, the serious of the moment broken. Ashlynn raised an eyebrow into the nothingness.

  “The trial will be a series of evil creatures you must defeat unto death. Let the trial begin!” Asteroth announced. “And don’t die, I went through a lot to keep you alive,” he added as an afterthought.

  “Gee, thanks for the vote of confidence. You can be such an ass.” Ashlynn chuckled and stood, waiting for what would come next.

  The room erupted with light. The large, empty, stone room on the second floor of the castle turned into a vast desert of coarse, tan sand spotted with large boulders, tall cacti, and birds of prey circling above her. The sun beat hot upon her skin, causing her eyes to squint into the distance. Ashlynn drew her dagger from the holster strapped at her waist and held it out, prepared for a fight. She slowly turned, seeking out the threat.

  From behind a cluster of stacked boulders, a small, blue creature crawled slowly over the top. Part bird and part reptile. It didn’t appear dangerous, covered with soft, blue feathers and a bright orange head. Then it opened its beak-like mouth and showed a set of razor-sharp teeth.

  “I know this one. Its spit is venomous and can blind you instantly if any of it touches your face,” Ashlynn recited, as if from a book.

  “Then I suggest you don’t let it spit on you,” Asteroth commented sarcastically. Ashlynn didn’t take her eyes off the creature, though she did manage to roll them.

  “I saw that.”

  “Where are you even at?” she asked. “I’m pretty sure there aren’t statues in the desert.”

  “I created the illusion. I get to interject at my choosing.”

  “Great. Just what I need: an insufferable castle with too much magic to commentate on my trial.” She shook her head but smiled. Ashlynn tracked the creature as it moved over the boulders. The beady orbs of the desert beast eyed her as the prey it thought she was.

  “What are you waiting for? It’s going to spit on you,” Asteroth taunted.

  “Shut up. I know what I’m doing.”

  Ashlynn stalked the creature a moment more, then it sprung off the boulder from its vantage point with a high-pitched battle cry. Ashlynn pivoted away from it, swung her arm down in a cross attack and used her magic to guide her hand, cutting off the creature’s head, severing it in one, clean slice. Blue blood splattered across her face as the head dropped at her feet, the body following with a thump. The remains of the creature burst into black ash.

  “That was fast,” she said with a rush of relief.

  Ashlynn wiped off her face then stared at her hand with a look of disgust. “Gross. I thought this was a simulation.”

  “It is. But it also has real consequences. Thus, why I said, ‘don’t die.’”

  “Now you tell me,” she grumbled.

  Ashlynn wiped her blade on her pants, already splattered with the blue blood, and quickly repositioned herself. “What’s next?”

  “Turn around.”

  Ashlynn turned, ready with her weapon and magic for whatever monster would come next. The room changed seamlessly from the desert to a jungle filled with a grouping of tall trees complete with vines draping from one set to the next. Sounds of the jungle flooded her ears. Giant insects climbed thick trunks while monkeys swung from branch to branch above her head. The threat had yet to show itself. Ashlynn slowly moved deeper into the jungle, her eyes searching for anything that stood out and her magic seeking what her eyes could not see. Above her, familiar chattering sounded, and she looked up to find her beloved pet, Hijinx. He was a whirrel, a creature resembling a small, cute, furry hybrid between a large squirrel and an owl. The last of its kind as far as she knew.

  “Hijinx!” Ashlynn whispered. “What are you doing in here? You’re not supposed to be here!”

  “I tried to stop him, but my magic is a little tied up at the moment,” the talking castle admitted with frustration.

  Ashlynn pointed her finger at her pet. “You stay put, Hijinx. Watch, but don’t interfere.”

  The monster used Ashlynn’s moment of distraction to make itself known. Creeping out from its hiding place within the branches of another tree, the beast lunged to a branch closer to Ashlynn and then snarled. Creature number two resembled a large cat, like a cheetah but with long fangs, spikes all over its body, and a long whip-like tail with a cluster of spikes in a ball at the end.

  “Where do you find these creatures? I thought this one was extinct,” she stated studying the beast above her, watching its every move, not willing to be distracted again.

  “Oh, please! You insult me. Nothing magical can ever go extinct, not truly. Especially not with my abilities.”

  “Trying to focus on a dangerous beast here,” Ashlynn countered, knowing she would annoy the castle. The sound of his huff confirmed she succeeded.

  The cat leaped from the branch and landed just before Ashlynn with his hackles raised, ready to strike. Without waiting, the beast lunged at her, but Ash countered, ready with a quickly produced magical shield and dagger, knocking the cat onto its back. The creature sprung back to its paws and slashed its tail around, just missing Ashlynn’s legs. She jumped back, avoiding the second whip of the cat’s tail. “You son of a bitch, you won’t get the best of me!”

  Ashlynn threw her dagger at the cat, but it dodged the strike, throwing itself to the ground. She pulled out another dagger from inside her boot. “You’re a smart beasty, aren’t you?”

  “Here it comes. Here it comes! I can’t watch,” Asteroth warned with a high-pitched whine.

  “Asteroth, shut the hell up!”

  The cat lunged with a mighty shriek, piercing the sounds of the jungle, commanding all into silence.

  Ashlynn pulled her sword from behind her back and prepared to thrust it into the depths of the beast.

  Hijinx, her beloved, idiotic pet, jumped from his perch high above and landed on the head of the great cat. The cat bucked and threw the whirrel up in the air, then swatted him with its sharp, pointed tail. H
ijinx landed with a deep thud, his only sound a soft whimper.

  “No!” Ashlynn released a cry, the sound of fury unleashed from the depths of her core. The cat batted its long claws at her. Ashlynn swung out a magical shield and drove her sword right into the heart of the cat. With only scratches on her arms to show for it, Ashlynn twisted her sword, slashing through the cat’s soft underbelly, spilling guts onto the jungle floor. With the final blow dealt, the cat disintegrated into a pile of ash. Breathing heavily, Ashlynn ran to her pet.

  “Hijinx! You little idiot, what were you doing?” Ashlynn cradled the whirrel gently under his head, assessing the damage. Three long red and bloodied slashes crossed down his side. A single tear fell down Ashlynn’s blood-stained, dirty cheek.

  “Please don’t die. I can’t lose you,” Ashlynn whispered and wiped the tear from her face. Other than Asteroth, who couldn’t leave, Hijinx was the only thing still with her that she cared about.