Island Shifters: Book 01 - An Oath of the Blood

by Valerie Zambito

  The blood oath would have it no other way.

  The full moon seemed an eager participant in the tireless activities taking place in the city of Parsis. Beck shared neither the moon’s nor the citizens’ fervor as he walked purposefully through the midst of the preparations. Having seen the size of the Cyman Army firsthand, he was more than a little concerned that the thousand or so shifters in Parsis was not enough. Envoys had been sent to the outlaying settlements as a call to arms, and once the newcomers arrived it would add another three thousand to their numbers, but it would take time. And, whether or not all would be able to reach the city before the Cyman Army was anyone’s guess.

  With new purpose in their hearts, the Council Members disregarded all misgivings and bolstered their preparations for war. Even Jakob Martyn was now readily devising battle tactics with his fellow bodyshifters.

  Needing no prodding prior to the blood oath’s not so subtle reminder, Jorge Owen vigorously directed the shirtless earthshifters at creating defensive barriers, gleans of sweat layering their abnormally muscular chests. With casual waves of their hands, great holes in the ground opened up and the dirt was used to construct the enormous dirt walls from which the shifters would make their stand against the invading army. Other earthshifters carried large boulders with ease to reinforce the bulwarks from behind.

  Under Rogan’s direction, the fireshifters were busily inventing elaborate strategies to throw at the enemy, and the ideas for destruction were getting more lethal as the night wore on.

  Earlier that evening, Beck’s father had asked Airron to take their only bargaining chip, Titus, south and out of the fight to await further word. Master Atlan had originally asked Kiernan to do so, but she adamantly refused to leave Beck. Airron did not want to abandon the conflict either, but Jaimes convinced him that he needed a strong shifter to guard the Cyman, so ultimately he relented.

  Jaimes Atlan had also wisely instructed that as many horses as possible be corralled to the south in the event an emergency retreat was required, and Beck made sure that Chasin was among them.

  Kiernan was doing her part teaching some of the younger shifters how to use a sword. She had changed out of her drab gray Legion uniform and into a dress and sandals. Beck smiled as he took a moment to watch her. Even while sporting a deadly weapon with a grim look on her face, she was beautiful to him.

  The shifters were preparing for battle, despite his fears.

  Turning away, he jogged along the boulevard searching for his mother. He was told that she was assisting with sequestering the older women and children into the underground storage cellar of the Town Hall, but with all of the people in the streets, he was having difficulty locating her.

  He hoped that the troublesome Halfies had made it safely to Haventhal. Surprisingly, he had come to appreciate the spirit of the little imps. Against his very nature to be mean, Vinni Vee had traveled out of his way to warn Beck that danger was coming. Even though Beck did not believe that the Halfie could actually read such a warning in the clouds, he had to admit that Vinni was right. Danger did find him.

  Not only did it find him, it threatened to devour him.

  His thoughts of Vinni quickened his footsteps. He had to find his mother to get the answers he was sure she had. He thought back to the night he left for The Crown Bluffs when she seemed distracted and evasive. Yes, he was sure his mother had been holding back information from him.

  He found Constance Atlan expertly guiding a group of older women to the shelter of the Hall. Her face was drawn and exhausted and Beck felt his heart tug, and he swallowed down the lump that formed in his throat. No matter what happened, he promised himself, he would see to it that she stayed safe.

  “Mother!”

  Constance looked up and used the back of her hand to move a loose strand of hair from her eyes. She smiled as she saw him.

  “Can I talk to you for a moment?” he asked when he reached her.

  “Of course. Katrin, can you please take over for me?” The mindshifter who was helping Constance quickly took the lead. She peeked up from under her long eyelashes to give Beck a quick demure smile.

  He nodded politely to her and then led his mother to one of the small benches that lined the square. Mother and son sat side by side in the middle of the commotion going on all around them.

  “I am worried, Beck,” she admitted with a sigh.

  “We all are, mother,” he said putting his arm around her shoulders and hugging her close to his body. “But, I will protect you. I will not let anything happen to you or father.”

  She was staring at him as if seeing him for the first time. Again, she looked like she wanted to say something to him, but was not sure how to put it into words. He remained silent while her internal struggle took place. At last, she reached out and cupped her hand under his chin. “Where did my little boy go?” she whispered. “The mother in me just wants to pick you up and run with you as far from this place as possible.” Beck grinned inwardly at the mental picture in his mind. “But, the shifter in me knows that not only can I not keep you from harm, but I fear you are our only hope.”

  “As Savitar?”

  He felt her stiffen. “Where did you hear that word?”

  “You would not believe me if I told you,” he confessed. “What does it mean? Why have I been called Savitar?”

  She looked at him as if measuring him up in some way. Then, she lowered her head and looked at her hands in her lap. “Do you remember when I told you Mage Galen Starr visited me when you were a baby and he left you that pendant?”

  “Yes.”

  She stood from the bench and turned her back to him. “He also told me at that time that you had been born with enhanced shifting abilities that would be needed in the future to ensure the safety of the island. He told me…” she paused and choked back a sob. “Dear angels above, he told me that your future would be filled with danger and combat.”

  Beck quickly went to her. “Mother….”

  She spun around to face him. “Do you know what it felt like to be a new mother and be told that about your baby son?” she cried. “My only goal after that visit,” she continued, weeping now, “was to give you the best childhood I could to make up for the life I knew you would inherit. I had no other children so I could devote my entire life to making you happy.”

  Beck was dumbfounded by her sacrifice. “I do have a great life, mother, and that is why I treasure it so much.” He gave her a small smile. “If, as you say, I will play a role in this battle, I have you to thank. You have given me more tools for this day than either the Academy or the Legion. You taught me to appreciate life and to fight for life.”

  She grabbed the front of his shirt. “Don’t you see, Beck! Without your knowledge or consent, an unbelievable burden has been thrust upon you.” She laughed resentfully. “I guess I always hoped that it would not come to anything, but it has, and I have put you on the front line of a war!” His mother did not bother to wipe the tears streaming down her face. “I should have taken you and ran, Beck. Hidden you from harm! Why didn’t I? I had years to do something and now it is too late! What kind of mother am I? What kind of mother deliberately puts her son in harm’s way?”

  Beck dropped to his knees in front of her and hugged her around the waist. “A mother who cares for the people of Massa. A mother who did not have any other choice because she is bound by a blood oath to protect and defend.” He looked up at her tenderly. “A mother I am proud to call mine.”

  She moaned as she wrapped her arms around his head. “Oh, Beck. I am so sorry.”

  He looked up at her with regret. “I am sorry, mother, that you did not have any more children because of me.”

  Through her tears and pain she said, “I did not have any more children because of me, not you. My heart was so full of love for you, that I did not have room for another child. It was my choice.”

  Mother and son held each other for long moments, before Beck let go of her and stood. “Where can I
learn more about why I have been named Savitar?”

  She shook her head, sniffling. “You could seek out Galen Starr in Haventhal, but nobody knows where he is or if he is even still alive.”

  “Airron also has the same pendant. Is he Savitar, as well? What about Rogan and Kiernan?” he asked.

  Constance shook her head. “I honestly do not know, Beck. All I know is what I did to you.”

  “You did nothing to me, mother,” he said firmly. “Except make me appreciate life.”

  Chapter 11

  THE DESTRUCTION OF THE MAGICAL KINGDOM OF PYRAAN

  Kiernan heard them coming with her heart in her throat and leaned in closer to Beck as they lay side by side in a furrow of soil atop one of the fortifications created by the earthshifters the evening before. The ominous sound of thousands of feet rushing toward her in the pre-dawn darkness was as frightening as it was meant to be. Jaimes Atlan warned them that Adrian Ravener would try to intimidate them. He would want them to make mistakes out of sheer terror.

  I am with you, Princess, said Bajan, who was crouched behind her. Do not be afraid. Any creature that gets close will have me to deal with.

  Bajan, just in case…. she began, but he cut her off.

  Do not make it sound like the end, because it is not. I promise. You will have time to torment me for many years to come.

  I do not mean to torment you.

  I would not have it any other way.

  Despite her fright, she smiled at the Draca’s words.

  Rogan was lying in the channel on her left side. The Council ordered that Beck and Rogan position themselves at the top of the barricade for the higher vantage point that would allow them an unobstructed view of the battlefield. Airron, thankfully, was safely out of the city.

  The shifters were using a U-shaped tactical formation with the earthshifters stationed on the ground in front of the center bulwark, and the fireshifters lining the top. The bodyshifters concealed themselves on the western flank in the Grayan Forest, and the mindshifters were scattered along the eastern edge of the U in hastily created earthen domes that would offer a bit of protection as they produced their unique form of mayhem. The advantage of the formation was in its solid defensibility against a larger opponent. The Grayan Forest and Lake Hawthorne created two natural barriers that would make it impossible for Ravener to send his entire army to bear on the citizens of Pyraan. He would be forced to send smaller units into the city on the road west of the lake where the shifters would be waiting to dispatch them.

  Regardless, thought Kiernan, every person there knew that the greatest threat came from Adrian Ravener and not the Cyman Army. With the sheer number of enemy soldiers, it would be a hard fought battle for survival against the Cymans, but with the Mage, a simple wave of a hand could cause destruction of immense proportion.

  The long, sinister sound of the enemy battle horn wrenched Kiernan back to the present in a rush. Every fiber of her being urged her to run, to get away from there.

  Death was coming, and she was right in its path.

  Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and drew on the power of her magic to calm her mind. She was a warrior, she chided herself. A protector. If death was coming for her, it would have a fight on its hands.

  More composed, she opened her eyes and glimpsed the Cyman Army as it appeared on the northern horizon like a black stain against the brightening sky. She was again staggered by the speed with which they moved. The huge, thick-skinned bodies charged into view with ear-splitting howls and did not slow their breakneck pace until they reached the shores of Hawthorne Lake.

  Kiernan held a range finder to her eye.

  Adrian Ravener was the only one mounted, and he rode through the center of the Cyman Army and stopped at the edge of the lake. She idly wondered which farm he had stolen the animal from along the way.

  All was still as the Mage sat silently appraising Parsis and her defenders and when he finished with his analysis, he lifted his arms and his body rose off his horse and into the air. He hovered for a few moments over the lake and then sailed toward the shifters, black cape billowing out behind him.

  The sun picked that very moment to peek up in the east, but the light could not compete with the inky blackness emanating from Adrian Ravener. He wore death and darkness on his shoulders like a mantle.

  Once past the lake, he flitted down to land effortlessly on the south shore.

  How did he do that?

  She wondered if it was sorcery or a heretofore-believed extinct form of airshifting.

  Dressed in all black with his black hair secured at the nape of his pale neck, he paced the shore of the lake with the dangerous grace of a predator. His youthful visage was a bit of shock, as she was expecting a three-hundred-year-old wizard to look ancient and withered.

  “So,” drawled Ravener, magically magnifying his voice and spreading his arms wide, “this is the Magical Kingdom of Pyraan.” He laughed scornfully as he looked around at their quickly constructed defenses. “I can sense where every shifter in this city is hiding, and I can tell you it is not enough.”

  Kiernan tensed as Beck pushed angrily to his feet. “What do you want, Ravener?”

  Adrian shot forward in a blur of black and hovered directly in front of Beck.

  Kiernan gave Beck credit. He did not flinch.

  Neither did the fireshifters next to her as they collectedly rose from their positions, the sound of their simultaneous shifting of fire a chilling warning that hung in the air.

  Adrian completely ignored them.

  “What do I want?” he repeated. “I want the Island of Massa, what do you think I want, young man? You people have had hundreds of years to rule this land and what do you do? You accept banishment as a way of life! You sit hiding away in a corner of the island like naughty children who have misbehaved!”

  “This land should be of no concern to you,” Beck declared.

  Adrian laughed with contempt. “This was my land long before yours, young shifter, and it appears that I am the only one strong enough to rule it. You people are weak! You allow yourselves to be treated like servile bodyguards by the people of Massa. It is absurd! You are magic users!” he roared, the clouds in the air above him roiling in response to his dark emotions. Lightning abruptly lit the sky and a peal of thunder boomed causing the shifters to duck involuntarily.

  Ravener looked around him and then asked, “Where is the young Cyman that you kidnapped from us?”

  Jaimes Atlan spoke for the first time from his position on the ground with the earthshifters. “He is far from here, but unharmed. He will be returned as soon as you agree to depart.”

  Adrian rolled his eyes. “This is really pitiable. You are even bigger fools that I imagined if you thought I would turn around and scurry back to Nordik simply because you hold the son of the Captain of my army.”

  Kiernan glanced at Beck at that piece of information.

  “I am not the sniveling coward that the shifters have proven themselves to be. While it is true that I am here to rule the Island of Massa, I do not intend to harm her people. After all, what good is a kingdom without its subjects.” Ravener swooped down to Master Atlan. “Who are the Savitars?”

  Jaimes Atlan’s face screwed up in confusion.

  “Think hard, sir! This is a very important question. Your answer will dictate succeeding events!”

  Master Atlan shook his head. “I honestly do not know.”

  “Very well,” said Ravener and darted back up to Beck. “You are an outspoken young man, so you must have half a brain at least. I have a task for you. As my emissary, you are to travel to the lands of Men, Dwarves, and Elves and demand their surrender. In order to avoid a war, the Kings of all three lands must appear before me at Starfell Keep in Haventhal and declare their unconditional relinquishment of power.”

  Beck snarled. “Why would I do your bidding, Mage?”

  “Because if you do not do as I ask, shifter,” sneered Adrian, “I will personally
hunt you down and kill you with my bare hands.”

  Kiernan put her hand on Beck’s arm to restrain him from being goaded into action.

  Ravener turned dismissively and then paused and twisted his head back over his shoulder to look at her. “And,” he taunted, gliding close to her, but addressing Beck. “If the Kings do not surrender to me by Earthshine, I will kill every single man in this land and keep the women and children for my slaves. I have found that the women are much more enjoyable to have around anyway,” he said, reaching out to touch her hair.

  In the space of a heartbeat, she unsheathed the dagger secured to her thigh and screamed with effort as she swung the weapon in a deadly upward arc toward the Mage’s throat. Bracing herself for the biting impact of the dagger on his flesh, her body spun off balance as the weapon sliced nothing but air.

  “Kiernan!” Beck screamed as she slid off the embankment.

  Intuitively, she rotated her body around and dug her sandaled feet into the wall to try to slow her descent. The fall would probably not kill her, she had time to think, but it would hurt her. Hurt her bad. The earthshifters would not be able to disturb the earth to soften her fall or they would risk toppling hundreds of shifters.

  She still had her dagger in her hand and she used all of her strength to swing it below her with a grunt into the hardened earth. As she slid by, she reached out with her other hand and grabbed the dagger with both hands, managing to stop her fall, legs swinging beneath her. She struggled to find a crevice in the wall with her feet to relieve the strain on her arm muscles, but found none. She groaned with the exertion required to hold her entire body weight with the tenuous grasp she had on the small dagger. Sweat poured into her eyes and her slick palms began to loosen their grip. Mentally, she braced herself for the inevitable plummet to the ground below.

  And then, he was there. Her white savior.

  Grab my neck, said Bajan, poised above her on the wall and lowering his head to within reach. She let go of the dagger first with one hand and then the other to wrap around the cat’s thick neck and hung on as he turned and scaled the wall face, sharp dragon talons piercing deep into the earthwork with each movement.