But we must go now.
Riley was suddenly wracked with a surge of pain. It reached her bones. She let out a wail that sounded terrible to her own ears.
“Help her!” Sean held her upright. Eric rushed to grab her other side.
“Riley, what is it?” Eric was in a panic.
Riley couldn’t move, couldn’t answer.
Sean lifted her onto Smaed and turned to Eric. “There’s no time. Tell them we’ll be back.”
Eric grabbed her hand. “Riley…”
She managed a nod, but no words would come. Sean grabbed Eric’s shoulders. “She’s dying. I will save her. I will. And she’ll return. I swear.”
From her spot cocooned between the griffin’s wings, she saw Eric’s fearful face. Sean climbed up behind her and wrapped his arms around her. She felt like stone, unmoving, cold, slow.
William and her dad were coming up behind Eric when Smaed took off. She couldn’t see them as they rose, but their shouts reached her. And then Sean gripped her tighter as they began to shimmer.
The last sounds she heard before they entered the velvet black space was her name being called far below by her dad and then Sean’s voice softly caressing at her ear. “I’ll save you, no matter the cost.” His voice broke, and his hand found hers. “This I swear, my maiden of mist.”
* * *
The End
Thanks for reading!
* * *
Continue the Legends of Lia Faíl series with Book Two, Maiden of Mist. Visit BellaAndrews.org for more series information.
About the Author
Bella Andrews lives in North Carolina with a Great Pyrenees and a collection of seeds that deserve their own underground bunker in the Arctic. If she’s not making potions or growing heirloom veggies, she’s hard at it on the keyboard, making groan-inducing puns and probably NOT doing the dishes.
www.BellaAndrews.org
The Inverse Selection
Alex H. Singh
The Inverse Selection (Book 1 Tapestry) © copyright 2018 Alex H Singh
Copyright notice: All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. 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 publisher.
This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.
Created with Vellum
The Inverse Selection
Elora was chosen for a destiny & destruction.
I never imagined that I would find myself in his predicament before.
Here on a different Earth, a different world.
If I had been transported back in time I know things would have been so much easier for me as I am good with dates but this…
This is like a fairytale in which the maiden has to learn to be her own Prince and fight the evils that are coming.
However will I find my way back home?
Back home to my world?
Time will tell. Let’s hope I survive till then.
Authors Note: The Inverse Selection is a medium-heat adult fantasy series which consists of over 20 novels. Enjoy!
Prologue
“ELORA!” Elora could only see that the tapestry below her was glowing, the tapestry that she had come to specifically see down in Thailand.
How had things gone wrong? Bram thought, staring at Elora as she fell to the ground in slow motion. His face completely paled in utter and complete fear as his eyes widened in disbelief. He couldn’t believe what was happening, but whatever it was, things weren’t good for Elora.
She had gone up in the strange temple to look at the tapestry properly, hanging from a rope that separated the first floor from the ground floor. Then, out of nowhere, the rope suddenly snapped, and the tapestry started to glow for reasons Elora couldn’t quite make out at first, until she noticed the drop of blood on the ground. This is it, she thought. My blood! The tapestry is tied to me! Just as she thought those last words, she had begun to fall into it.
A bright flash of light later, Elora disappeared, and so did Bram in the memories of what had led to this day.
* * *
One Day Earlier
She was wearing a simple blue colored jacket over a white printed t-shirt and blue jeans, and was looking around nervously as she trembled in excitement, wondering what might happen in the next few minutes. She had been longing to meet Marine and Bram for quite a long time and the fact that after endless hours of waiting and torture, the day had finally arrived and was only making her nerves fry up in excitement of meeting them again. She was inside of the metro that was leading to the terminal and her messenger bag with her books and laptop was strapped tight around her side. Her baggage was already checked in so she didn’t have to worry about it, and now all she wanted to do was get out of this infernally slow train, run out into the terminal and find where her friends were. There were so many things she had to share with Bram and with Marine. So many! Just the thought of them was bringing nervous tears to Elora’s eyes.
The past year had been really busy for Elora, considering she was studying archaeology and the course work was wearing her down due to the amount of time she had to put into it. She definitely didn’t want to fall behind in the things that mattered most, especially since she was one of the more intellectual students in the class. On top of her course load, she also had her job to worry about. Being a librarian wasn’t as easy as everyone thought it to be. That job took a lot of time and effort. That was why she had been looking forward to this trip for a long, long time.
All of that coupled with the fact that she was still not exactly sure what she wanted to do in the future. She had just passed her teen years and was becoming an adult. All she wanted right now was to be free. She was tired and had no ways of actually confiding her conflicts to someone. Who could she ask for advice on aspirations, goals, and the likes? She didn’t want to just sit around and do nothing. No! She wanted to be someone in life. And that is what had her stumped.
Maybe I am over thinking too much, she thought to herself, biting the inside of her chin. I am here for a vacation, not to ponder the misery that is my life at the moment. Come on James, cheer up! It’s been so long since you’ve met Bram and Marine!
She had not met her friends, Bram Barabu and Marine Jenkins for quite a while and that is what she was looking forward to the most. She didn’t want to be alone; she hated being alone and lonely. She knew that she had a lot of things to catch up on, but the very fact that she was going to meet the two of them again was going to be strange.
I wonder how old that man is. Elora’s mind suddenly changed as she saw a blonde haired man walk out of the metro in front of her. Getting out of the terminal, her eyes widened at the man that was walking away, looking at his phone. He had a simple black bag with him and looked as if he was her age. The fact he was tall and rugged looking didn’t help her either. He’s certainly handsome though, really handsome.
“Elora!” Elora looked up, perking up at the familiar sound. She got up, trying to find the familiar head of sandy blonde hair. After a few moments, she finally saw it coming at her in the distance. She didn’t even bother to brace herself from the impact of the crushing hug; all she cared about was she was no longer alone in the airport. “Oh my god Elora, look at you! It has been so long!”
“Hi Marine!” She enthused, her excitement mirroring Marine’s as she searched her face, looking for anything out of the ordinary. But t
here was nothing to see; Marine was exactly the way she remembered her. “Wow, it has been a very long time has it not?”
“Yeah,” Marine nodded, her eyes actually tearing up slightly. “We were so excited to meet you, you stay so far!”
“I know,” Elora sighed and shook her head. “I stay really, really far. I wished that I didn’t stay this far because, well, I wanted to meet you for such a long time but I just couldn’t. I had so many things to do—my job, college and life—that I couldn’t come in.” Elora paused for a second, realizing she didn’t see someone who should’ve been there. Where is…?”
Elora couldn’t speak as she caught sight of Bram. It had been a while since she had seen the man, but she had to admit, Bram had grown up good. The man was wearing a black blazer over a white t-shirt that made his black hair and eyes stand out like tires in a snowstorm and his blue jeans hugged him in all the right ways as he walked toward her and Marine, two bags trailing behind him.
No longer was he short, or cute and bubbly as she remembered. Now his height was far above her own. He had grown quite muscular as well, as she could see the perfectly formed muscles bulging inside of the shirt that he was wearing. He was not buff, by any means at all, but the mere sight of him definitely attracted attention. She remembered that Bram was not exactly the healthiest of the boys when they were young. He was short and scrawny but time was good to him. He grew up well after that. The way his black hair fell on his face and the way his pointedly black eyes looked at her made Elora’s heart tremble, but she knew that she had never been attracted to Bram in such a way that she was feeling now. Being under the gaze of this hunk of a man was already making her feel bubbly and frothy from the inside of her heart!
“Why, still remember me Elora? Wow, that ought to be something new,” Bram stated as he walked toward the group, his voice deep and attractive, the perfect baritone of the best man she could find. As far as Elora remembered, Bram and Marine were together and boy did she hit the jackpot with him! This hunk of a man was the biggest catch that there was in the sea out there! Elora was surprised by the growth that Bram had showed, but at the same time impressed by his size and his looks. “Should have waited for me, Mars.”
“Sorry Bram.” Marine sheepishly smiled as she got back to her boyfriend’s side, leaning on her tip-toes to kiss him on the cheek. Elora cut out of her surprised stupor and gave Bram a hug in greeting as well. She could feel Bram stiffening slightly at the contact but she didn’t care. Had she looked properly at Bram’s eyes, she would have seen why he had stiffened up.
His eyes were filled with love for Elora, love that he was struggling to hide as he hugged her back. While Elora hadn’t any idea as to what she was doing to him, Bram knew it well. He had been in love with this beautiful woman for a long time. How long, he wasn’t certain, but one thing he was certain of: his love for her wasn’t going to change anytime soon.
He and Elora had met a long, long time ago, in a cooking class at that. In fact, he remembered the day as if it was just yesterday!
A ten year old Elora James raised a haughty eyebrow at the equally ten year old boy who was looking at her intently. She had tasted his dish—egg soup with white rice and freshly prepared pickled vegetables—and had found it… adequate.
Actually, she found it better than adequate. She had been skeptical the moment she met him in a cooking class and rightly so. When she found out he was the best one in class, it was hard to believe. They were the same age, how could he better than her? The level of skill she believed he had was non-existent. The moment she voiced that to him, the young Elora had seen a mischievous gleam in the redheaded boy's eyes that had her cautious from that moment on.
Her fears were unfounded the moment she had taken a bite of his food and was nearly sent to food Nirvana. Of course she could never tell the young boy in front of her, she was too proud to do so. Okay, maybe not too proud. He did pretty well for his age.
"How long have you been cooking again?" she asked, a very light blush on her face.
"I've held a knife since I was seven. So, it’s been three years?" The redheaded boy grinned broadly at the girl across from him. "What'd ya think?"
"I-It was a-adequate," she stammered out, a full blush adorning her cheeks.
"Just adequate?" Bram asked cheekily, rubbing his chin and leaning in closer to the girl.
"Ye-Yes!" the girl squeaked out, leaning away from the infuriating boy. He was getting on her nerves, but she could not find in herself the will to push him away.
"Well then…" Bram crossed his arms across his chest and smirked broadly. "Looks like someone's a little dishonest."
"I am not dishonest!" Elora shot back at the boy, indignant at his disrespectful tone. "Your food was just adequate, and barely so!"
She frowned when he smiled even more widely, a very mischievous gleam in his eyes. The girl now realized she had gone just a little too far.
"Is that a challenge? 'Cause if it's so, I'll make you eat your words."
She wanted to smack that cheeky grin off his face so badly now. "You're a hundred years too early to challenge me Bram!" The little girl huffed, crossing her arms over her chest defiantly. Neither knew who was going to be the better one out of the two and the entire class shivered at the declaration between them.
That was one of the various things they were close in. It was all about their bond, and the bond that they once shared. Bram remembered every single moment he had with her, and how they had grown up.
Bram also remembered the day when they had decided to go swimming, and their little encounter with the shark. It was the first time he had seen Elora actually scared for him, as the shark had almost killed them. Or at least had tried to kill Bram.
They were very close once, but as time went on, the distance grew and they started to part ways. Then Bram met Marine and he just couldn’t reject her. Not over a simple childhood crush. But it was not a childhood crush, was it? No, it was actually a much bigger thing than a simple crush. He didn’t want to be a part of a crush or anything of the sort.
He had always been in love with Elora James, always, but he could never win her heart. He still had that silk band with him, and he wore it whenever he cooked, but it wasn’t ideal for today. Today was a day of fun.
And that was Elora then. Even when they were barely in their teen years, she had been a beautiful and very kind young woman. And now...
Elora was still short, but her height was not defined as the embarrassingly-short-like-a-dwarf height, but rather by her well-defined curves and beauty. Where once there had been baby fat on her face, there was none. Instead a well-defined, heart shaped face was in its place. When once those deep brown eyes held innocence, now they were smoldering and held defiance and pure, raw emotion that made him hold his gaze where he shouldn’t. Her soft reddish-brown hair flowed behind her as if she had a fiery visage. And her body…she had definitely grown from the petite girl for sure. Perfect natural curves molded inside the tank-top and jeans she was wearing and by the way she felt pressed against his body in what she thought was just a platonic hug, he could feel the nice, tantalizing visage of her breasts. Not to mention the mesmerizing scent clinging to her body, the scent of Valentine’s Day: a burning fireplace, rich Swiss chocolate, and freshly bloomed roses. It took all of him to let go of her and when she smiled at him with those ruby red lips, it was a chore to not pull her back in and relish in her.
“There’s so much I need to tell you!” Breaking out of his stupor of the past and his appreciation of how his long-time-love had grown, he looked at Marine who had a really, really excited look on her face as she grasped Elora’s hand and tugged her along. “And so much you need to know about! We have so many things to discuss and plan about the vacation as well!!!”
“I know, right.” Elora nodded, her own eyes looking interested. “Well our flight’s going to take a while. How about you start telling me what all is going on with our good old home?”
“Well as much
as I want to believe you, our flight is boarding. Shall we go then?” Bram said, pointing towards the ‘now boarding’ sign on the plane. Elora nodded and looked at a disappointed-looking Marine who just wanted to sit down and gossip with Elora. But they had an entire plane ride to go through, and that was what she was looking forward to.
As they walked ahead, Bram was still looking at Elora, appreciating how she had grown. She was still only twenty years old and had just come out of her teenage years but yet, she was really beautiful.
It turned out that their seats were close to each other, Bram was getting the window seat while Elora and Marine sat beside each other, looking keen to gossip about all that was going on in the world. And the way that they talked, it was going to be strange as hell.
“So, what is your plan for this vacation?” Leaning on the hand-rest of the seat, Marine leaned forward. From where Bram was sitting, he could see his girlfriend’s own figure highlighted against the shirt and jeans she was wearing and he had to appreciate her figure as well. While no Elora, she definitely was good looking with her naturally pale skin. “I have been looking forward to this so much! Like, honestly!”
“I know, so have I actually.” Elora smiled, her eyes glinting. “I have heard so much about Thailand and Chaing Mai that it’s getting a bit ridiculous. My boss, the warden of the library, couldn’t stop talking about the historical semblance of this site, yet it is so mystifying and so elegant in nature that I couldn’t help but search more about it.”
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