by F Stone
Kingdom of Gods
By award-winning author,
F. Stone
Editor
Nicki Elson
Book Cover
By Extended Imagery
Copyright Information
Kingdom of Gods,
Copyright 2019 by J. Weir / F. Stone
All Rights Reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in a database or retrieval system, without prior written permission of the author.
The characters and events in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead, is coincidental and not intended by the author.
Library and Archives Canada
Kingdom of Gods ebook ISBN: 978-0-9951509-4-2
Kingdom of Gods hard cover ISBN: 978-0-9951509-5-9
Kingdom of Gods Paperback ISBN: 978-0-9951509-6-6
Kingdom of Gods pdf ISBN: 978-0-9951509-7-3
Novels by F. Stone
Kingdom of Gods was first published in 2011 under the title The Guardian’s Wildchild.
Forbidden, Better Wear Your Flak Jacket: In 2017, F. Stone published her second novel, Forbidden. This suspense/thriller won the Readers’ Favorite International Gold Award in the Thriller/Terrorist category. Forbidden also received the Wishing Shelf Finalist award at The Fussy Librarian Book Awards.
It is available at Amazon (https://goo.gl/iPzvYe), Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, Kobo
Book trailer: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FXq_RBqIPT8
Dedication
Prologue - Year 2020
1. The Guardians - Year 2028
2. Madame - Year 2039
3. Seduction of the Rule Book
4. Celeste and Sidney
5. Stepping Into the Darkness
6. Captain Waterhouse’s Prisoner
7. Gift For the Captain
8. An Old Mexican’s Crystal
9. Blurry Line Between Friend and Foe
10. Sidney’s Escape
11. Rules for Sidney
12. Hanging on to Secrets and the Sacred
13. A Witch’s Magic
14. Sam’s Dark Prison
15. Sidney’s Execution
16. Feather Magic, Crystal Power
17. The Betrayal and the Kiss
18. The Missing Prisoner
19. The Slow Dance
20. Drowning an Admiral
21. Savannah’s Gift
22. Madame’s Spy
23. Madness and Clarity
24. A Dirty Deal
25. Guardians of Light and Dark Duel
26. The Admiral’s Guardian
27. Madame’s Revenge
Epilogue
About F. Stone / Judy Weir
Acknowledgments
Dedication
This story is dedicated to Scotty, a Shetland Sheepdog who came into my life in February of 1994. He quite simply and thoroughly changed my life. Through his need for healing of physical and emotional pain, I found ways of healing myself beyond conventional means. Through Scotty I learned more about unconditional love and the higher good than I had in my previous sixty something years. Scotty propelled me forward to discover I had a power that most would not dare to acknowledge.
Prologue - Year 2020
The year 2020 was one long, terrifying nightmare. The planet trembled violently for months as if desperately trying to shed its skin. Land masses fell into the oceans or were consumed by the water’s thirst for new territory. Tsunamis followed the Earth’s devastating quakes, swallowing great ships and sweeping shorelines, sucking debris and bodies into oblivion. In one year, the world’s maps became as useless as the rudimentary drawings of ancient explorers.
Governments worldwide activated martial law. Extreme measures were deemed necessary to maintain law and order. There was zero tolerance for anyone threatening the stability of the social order and security of the United States of America. Those arrested were quickly tried and given a life sentence. Over the next twenty years, rigid controls were somewhat relaxed, but not to the satisfaction of many. Protests fell on deaf ears.
Underground rebellion movements became lethal. Intolerant of the continued harsh controls and closed-door leadership, they aimed to destroy governments. Highways were no longer safe for government officials — many were hijacked, executed, and dumped by the roadside.
The government began to implement new tactics. Prisoners convicted of terrorism disappeared without a trace. Within twenty-four hours of arrest, they were quietly tried, then disappeared. No record, no witnesses, no media to voice the underground’s grievances, no chance of a hearing, no escape. There was no acknowledgement that terrorist activity had occurred. Fear escalated among the followers of the underground. Their morale dropped, along with the frequency of their activities.
Admiral Garland followed government policy to the letter, and took advantage of the hold he had over Sam Waterhouse, Captain of the USS Nonnah, a naval supply ship. Prisoners were executed on the Nonnah, well away from the public view. Blood was never spilled on the admiral’s New Seattle Naval Base. To the outside world, his base’s security had never been breached. No one would ever discover his secret.
1. The Guardians - Year 2028
The winter of 2028 arrived early on Hawk’s Island. The Stone Clan was long accustomed to the temperamental nature of their island, located a mere twenty miles west of Vancouver Island. They had arrived thousands of years ago during their escape from certain genocide, one of a dozen similar clans fleeing from autocratic leaders who feared the Guardians’ challenge to their supreme authority if they were allowed to remain among the people. When the Guardian clans fled, they found refuge in seclusion and carefully concealed their locations across the planet.
Hawk’s Island had never appeared on maps, and only those who sought the higher good in their deeds and thoughts would see its magnificent towering cliffs and lush, boreal forests. Resources were few, but the fresh water and grazing meadows would provide their sustenance — along with some help from their powerful sun crystals.
Wind moaned outside the Guardian Elders’ meditation lodge. In the summer, two window openings would let in the sun and songs of birds from the surrounding forest. But today, shutters sealed the openings, protecting the eight Elders from the drifting snow. Inside, they prepared for another day of meditation.
Greystone, the youngest of the Elders, gathered his wool blanket around his shoulders and up over this head. Even though the blue threads had lost their lustre and the edges were badly frayed, he considered it a treasure. It was all that remained from his past when, lost at sea five hundred years ago, he’d been rescued by the Guardians. His long, dark brown hair was braided behind his ears and lay on his rust-colored, wool shirt. In spite of his great age, he appeared no more than thirty, his stature tall and robust. Merging with the Guardian sacred truths had slowed his ageing nearly to a standstill.
He sat down on another blanket on the lodge’s worn wooden floor. For hundreds of years, he and his fellow Elders had meditated daily while seated on this floor. It had absorbed their murmurs, heard their calls to their spirit guides, and echoed their joy. The meditation room was small and spare. Candles, a kettle, and a teapot rested on a table.
There were enough cups for each of the Elders plus a few more, though many were often missing. Some cups could be found beside computers in the children’s classroom, others in the fifteen cabins where the Guardians performed their artistic talents, creating their legendary paintings and sculptures. All of these were sold on the continents and provided financial support to maintain the community and its helicopter. The missing cups were a minor irritant, especially for Livingstone, the newest Elder, who was now searching for his fav
orite.
Gazing into the small fire in the center of the room, Greystone searched for its comforting warmth. It wasn’t the chill in the air from which he was seeking refuge. His heart was deeply touched by the coldness of the times. His power of clairvoyance allowed him to witness all that took place on the planet.
He saw people searching for clean water. Medicine was scarce. Poorer coastal countries resorted to piracy in order to acquire scarce resources. Greystone watched the United States claw its way back from the overwhelming loss of land and naval strength during the Great Quake of 2020. Nearly 350 million people had been confirmed dead and another 50 million people were missing. Countless resources had been lost worldwide. Recently, martial law had eased, though only somewhat. The search for answers to the energy crisis had been replaced by the frantic efforts to rebuild lost cities and replace submerged farmland.
Even so, the common citizens continued to raise their families, work in their offices and construction sites, find joy in their sand dune playgrounds, sail their ships, and hold on to their vision of a new order of humanity. Away from the madness in government halls and military bases, there was an underlying current of calm. Greystone heard people question their leaders’ motives. “Will the higher good be served?” they often asked.
He saw a dark future for the planet Earth. Traveling forward in time, Greystone stood on a lifeless plain with no clouds, no wind or sun. He saw a planet void of light and sound. Greystone’s vision revealed that hope rested on the shoulders of his ten-year-old student, Sidney Davenport.
His fellow Elders, dressed in their simple cotton and wool clothes, sat with him in a circle around the fire — a focal point for their meditation. Birthstone was believed to be the eldest. Greystone thought she appeared to be Light itself with her bright blue eyes; her long white hair, braided and wrapped like a crown on her head; her fair and smooth complexion; small, gentle hands; and soft calming voice. Sometimes he found himself gazing at her, transfixed by her beauty.
Taking their customary seats in the room, the Elders spoke the spiritual truths of the Guardians in unison.
“Our path’s burden is equal to our strength. We won’t suffer failure if we remember the Creator’s love is the source of our power. If we seek the Light and Truth, the higher good will be served. Our actions and thoughts are energies that return to us tenfold in the same manner as we delivered them into the universe. As you believe, so shall it be. We are one. We are eternal.”
Livingstone and Lightstone began to beat their drums at a rhythmic tempo. Pockets of Guardian Elders around the planet joined in with the chant, “Let our Light be seen. Let our Light be received. Let our Light be healing. Let our Light be joyful. Let our Light be love.” Greystone heard the voice of Paulo, his mentor in Acapulco, and gave him a thumbs-up salute. For thirty minutes they continued until Birthstone raised her hands for the chanting to cease.
For the remainder of the morning, the Elders telepathically shared their thoughts as the fire cast dancing shadows onto the log walls. They sent universal life energy around Earth and to its people, giving powerful healing to all who were open to receiving their gift.
The air was filled with the warm, pungent smell of burning spruce and poplar in the fire pit. The branches sizzled and snapped. The meditation went on. Candles flickered. Hour after hour, the Elders held their trance, focused only on their task of urging all humanity to return to its Guardian heritage. They sent their spiritual messages to all, including the merciless souls orchestrating their destructive storm.
Quietly, Terri Davenport and her ten-year-old daughter, Sidney, opened the door of the Elder’s meditation lodge and entered the sacred space. It was time for lunch. They had brought biscuits, jam, cheese, and dried fruit. Without disturbing the Elders, they placed more wood on the fire and set a kettle over it. While they waited for the water to boil, they joined the circle and meditated.
Sidney chose to sit beside Greystone, her mentor. Greystone adored Sidney, or Wild Child, as he liked to call her. He felt her small hand take his. He smiled. He’d have to remind her during their next session together not to interrupt another’s meditation.
Terri heard the water boiling and proceeded to make the tea. Gradually, the others returned to the present. While the food and tea were served, each Elder took an opportunity to tease the youngest Davenport. They loved the sound of her giggles. Her long, curly, auburn hair bounced as she skipped from one to another, flashing her beautiful, pale green eyes as she offered her tray of treats. Never shy, she returned the teasing with zeal.
Sipping on her tea, Birthstone beckoned Sidney to sit beside her. The girl was speechless at the invitation. Seldom did she even see Birthstone; to be invited to sit with her was a high honor. Birthstone gestured again, patting the floor where she wanted Sidney to sit. She also beckoned Terri to come sit beside her daughter. Together the three formed a small circle. Sidney gazed into Birthstone’s blue eyes.
“We thank you very much for providing this wonderful meal,” said the great lady. “I’d like to do something for both of you in return. Would you like to go on a journey with me?”
Sidney expected Birthstone to tell a story. Instead, the Elder held out her hands, palms turned toward the ceiling. “I’ll take both of you to a most beautiful place, a place where the Guardians used to live many thousands of years ago. And we’ll go to a place in the future.”
As Sidney looked into Birthstone’s smiling face, the ancient woman wondered if she truly understood what she was saying. The Davenport family had only recently joined the Guardian community, and Sidney was still a novice in the more advanced Guardian powers. She quickly became embarrassed and glanced at her mom.
Terri patted her daughter’s hand. “Sidney, you can do this, my girl. I’ll be right beside you. Remember your experience with Greystone on the mountain ledge just a few months ago? You told me that at first you were frightened. But only for a moment, right?”
Sidney brought her hands up to her mouth to stiffle to giggle. She nodded.
“Sounds like you have a story, Sidney.” Birthstone chuckled while Greystone rolled his eyes and shook his head. “Would you first tell me your story?”
It took no urging. Sidney loved to tell stories. “Well, you see, Greystone and me, we were up on Blueberry Ridge, sitting on that ledge that overlooks the valley. You know the one where Celeste flys around?”
Sidney stopped briefly enough for Birthstone to nod. “Well, Greystone’s body became, like, transparent and, you know, shimmery. You know what I mean? Then, he was, like, gone. Greystone vanished right there.” Sidney sprung up on her feet and threw her arms up in the air. “Gone!” she shouted. She put her hands on her hips and opened her mouth wide as if in disbelief.
Birthstone was amused.
“Well, I tried to see if he was still there, you know, if I could touch him. There was nothing. I was pretty scared, at least for a little bit. Then I called him. ‘Greystone, you come back here, right now!’ And he did. He was even laughing. Can you believe that?”
Birthstone laughed. “Yes, Sidney, I can believe Greystone did that. Now are you ready to try something new?”
Sidney sat down again. “You mean, I can travel with you, Birthstone. I can do this? Really?”
“Yes, Sidney, and return in less than a blink of an eye.” Birthstone winked at her. “Remember, you can return here anytime you wish with just a thought.”
“Okay, I’ll try it.” She shuffled her bottom along the floor to get a little closer to Birthstone. Without any further hesitation, Sidney and her mother followed Birthstone’s instructions, placing the palms of their hands on each other’s palms. Immediately, the Elders were no longer around. Sidney was aware of her mother and Birthstone still beside her. Being free of the three-dimensional world’s limitations, she could see their auras with greater clarity than through her physical eyes. Light glowed from them, combining energies with that of the universal life force.
Sidney saw that he
r physical body was diminutive compared to her ethereal body — which possessed a brilliant radiance and a passionate vibration. It reminded her of the dancing lights of the aurora borealis. It was the ultimate freedom. She recalled sensing this energy on other occasions. It was the same exquisite feeling she got when she communicated with her spirit guide, Seamus.
Just for a moment, Sidney created the thought to return to the Elder’s lodge. In a flash she was back seated on the floor with her mother and Birthstone.
Birthstone opened her eyes and softly inquired, “Were you frightened, Sidney?”
“Nope, just testing.” She giggled. “Let’s go for real this time.”
She heard the chuckles of the Elders.
In the same instant the lodge disappeared, the trio arrived at their destination. The meadow in which they found themselves took Sidney’s breath away. Never had she seen anything so perfect. It was much like the Guardians’ island, but in some ways even better. She felt surrounded by a healing energy. Then she saw them — two people walking along a river, a man and a woman.
The man lifted his hand toward a grove of trees, and a bird flew onto his outstretched palm. Sidney was certain he and the bird were communicating. The man nodded, and the bird returned to the skies. A moment later, the couple disappeared. Sidney became aware that she was standing with her mouth wide open in awe.
Sidney reached for her mother. “Mommy! Did you see that? I mean, did you really see?” Sidney became speechless.
Terri kneeled down and held her daughter close. “Yes, Sidney. This is how things were in the beginning. All of humanity were Guardians and lived like this until nearly everyone broke away from the sacred truths. They lost their powers and became servants of their physical nature. We call them the sleeping Guardians.”
