The Legends of Regia Box Set: The Complete Series. Books 1-7

by Tenaya Jayne

  He moved slowly, cupping her cheek, and running his thumb lightly over her lips.

  She bit down on his thumb, shocking him. “Not so easy,” she said.

  He kissed her roughly. The way he really wanted to. She wanted chemistry? He didn’t know if she felt any, but he was swamped in it. He pulled back and looked down at her. Her eyes fluttered open and fixed on him.

  “Well?” he asked.

  She gave him a small smile. “Are you taking me to dinner?”

  “Uh…yes. I suppose I am.”

  She flounced back around her desk, opened the box, pulled out the scarf and draped it over her shoulders. He offered her his arm. She linked hers through his as they left the office.

  Tesla dozed, her mind half awake, waiting for her parents to finally go to sleep. As soon as they did, her eyes sprang open, and she slid out of bed. She dressed quickly, feeling antsy. She was going to find something tonight, she was sure of it. The feathery fingers of destiny tickled all around her. Merhl’s words about letting her heart lead, rang in her mind again, as they had over and over since he’d said them.

  She took a deep breath and exhaled on a hiss. She was about to open the strata, but her hands surged. Stabbing, shocking, and throbbing, the power pushed under her skin. She curled her hands into fists and bit down on her lip, holding in a cry of pain. Before it got worse, she tore open the atmosphere and rushed to the Everpath.

  As soon as she felt the ground under her feet, she screamed. Lightning shot out of all ten fingers, flying through the air in long snakes through the hallway. The release had helped. She panted as the pain eased back to an ache and looked down both sides of the hall. Goosebumps rose on her skin, and her hair stood on end. She was alone, like always. But also, like always, cold fingers of warning and dread curled all through her. Although it seemed a neutral place, the Everpath was creepy, and there was no doubting the danger, especially when the wind blew down the hall. She closed her eyes for a second, pushing the fear away so she could listen to her instincts.

  Tesla’s footsteps echoed down the hall as she walked. She reached out and let her hand run lightly against the doors on her left, seeing if touch might direct her to the place she needed to be. She counted the doors as she went. Each one looked the same, but they all felt different. She knew immediately when she touched the door to a world she’d already been through. Suddenly, she stopped.

  Tesla put both of her hands flat against the door. A ripple went through her hands, soothingly cool. This was a non-magical world. Basic. Plain even. So why did she want to go inside? What could it possibly offer her? Merhl said to try this kind of thing. The fact that she wanted to go inside so badly made her pause and question…almost fear.

  No sound echoed down the hallway, but still Tesla jumped in alarm, her heart in her throat. Long shadows, like reaching fingers, stretched over the floor and walls toward her.

  “I feel you… Come to me,” a low seductive voice whispered.

  Startled, Tesla ran as fast as she could, away from the shadows.

  “Who are you? Don’t go… I will give you everything… Anything you want, if only you would stop thwarting me. Come back, sweet thing… Come back… I need you…”

  She reached the door to Regia and pushed through. She landed hard in her bedroom, her ankles burning and stinging as she hit the floor. What was that? Was it talking to her, or was it a trap for anyone in the Everpath?

  Chills rolled up her spine. That voice—it was disgusting, beautiful, rough and simultaneously soft… too soft. Tesla knew she would never forget that voice. She paced her floor. She had to go back. Was there any real danger in the reaching shadows? Was its power any match for hers? Well, she knew one thing. It wasn’t going to stop her. She had to jump. There was no choice for her in that. And she was going back to that door, the one that called to her. She grabbed the strata and then hesitated. Not yet. She would wait, at least a little while before going back, and hopefully the thing lurking would give up. She shook out the opening in the air and went instead to the Heart.

  She landed just outside the ring of crystal trees circling the flame. The fire sparked around the top in response to her arrival.

  “Tesla.” The Heart’s guttural, male/female voice whispered inside her head.

  She went down on her knees and placed her hands flat on the ground in a bow.

  “It’s been a few days. I’ve missed you.” The Heart said.

  I was injured while jumping. I had to seek my grandfather’s assistance. He knows about the blood lock. I had to tell him. She answered in her mind.

  “Have you found anything new? The attacks on the lock have become sporadic. The wizards are trying new ways to break through. Each time is different. The lock needs maintenance. There’s a fracture. I’m sure the wizards are unaware of it for the moment. But a moment longer may be all we have before they discover it and focus their powers on it.”

  Tesla got to her feet and entered the circle. She reached into the flames and opened the tesseract. She saw the fracture immediately. Help me. She pleaded to the Heart.

  “Of course.”

  She pulled her right hand out of the tesseract, letting the lightning extend out through her skin. The flames wrapped around the red currents, mixing with them, until a small tornado of lightning and fire twisted in the center of Tesla’s palm. She tossed it into the air and caught it sideways before shoving it into the crack in the blood lock. The edges of the fracture fused back together, and a red tremor rolled through the sky.

  “Beautiful work, Tesla. As always.”

  She sighed, closed the tesseract, and took a step back. Thank you, but it’s not good enough. I haven’t found anything new, but I feel as though I may have found the door to something. I didn’t go through because there was something…odd in the Everpath. It frightened me, and I ran away.

  “Why did you not just attack it?”

  It caught me off guard. It won’t a second time.

  “Take care of yourself. I love you. It would cause me grief if you died.”

  Thank you…I love you, too.

  “When are you jumping again?”

  Tomorrow night. I’ll come back soon.

  “Stay safe, princess.”

  I’m not a princess.

  “Your lineage would suggest otherwise.”

  Tesla frowned, trying to imagine what her life would be like if her parents had decided to take the thrones. She looked down at herself. Torn jeans, combat boots, and a knife on her belt. A strange, strangled giggle bubbled up her throat.

  Maybe my dad is right about me. I am like my mother. Some princess I’d be.

  Tesla bid the Heart goodnight and decided to go home and not back to the Everpath. She changed into her pajamas and climbed into bed. She was home earlier than usual. Closing her eyes, relaxing under the warmth of her comforter, the voice slithered back into her mind. She listened to it over and over with a kind of morbid pleasure. It was not for her. Too mature, too dirty. Repulsed and intrigued at the same time as to who or what the voice belonged to. She shook it off. Her mind drifting onto the door she hadn’t gone through as she fell asleep.

  Forest scowled in the darkness of her bedroom and rolled over in bed. “She’s back,” she whispered to Syrus.

  “Good,” he grunted.

  He reached over and pulled her into his side. She tried to relax against him, but she was rigid.

  “Did you think your parents were stupid, when you were a teen?” she asked.

  “Yes,” he admitted easily.

  “I’m angry, Syrus.”

  “I know. I am, too. But what can we do? We can’t go with her wherever she’s going. Not even Rahaxeris can go with her.”

  Forest ground her teeth together. “Why are you so calm about this?”

  He sighed. “I’m not. You’re too preoccupied in what you’re feeling to listen to my heart. I’m as torn up as you are about this. I’d ground her, except that wouldn’t work. My power can’t hold her.�
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  “We’ve known she was sneaking out, but I wish Rahaxeris hadn’t told us what she was doing.” Tears choked Forest. “How can I help my baby? What can I do?”

  “There’s nothing, Forest. She’s trying to save the world. She knows things, can see and do things that no one else in all of Regia can do or comprehend.”

  Frustration rippled all over Forest. She growled and climbed on top of Syrus, grabbing him roughly by the wrists and kissed him violently. She rose up at the waist and looked down at him. His eyebrows raised in question.

  “I have nowhere else to alleviate what I’m feeling.”

  He chuckled and grabbed her hips. “Bring it. Take it all out on me, baby.”

  Mordian Castle

  A warm fragrant breeze blew playfully through the open balcony. The wizard king, Lachlan, walked barefoot on the pale green marble floors. He carried the universe sphere in one hand. Stolen from a recent world the wizards had consumed, it was his new favorite toy, and perhaps the most powerful and deadly tool he’d ever come across. He’d gutted it immediately, since its previous owner had filled it with good. Lachlan poured his own magic into it, connecting it to Mordian and his own personal desires. And tonight, it had come through for him. The sphere began to follow the movements of the power that prevented him from conquering Regia.

  Aside from the fact it was still in his way, the wall over Regia didn’t interest him. He cared about the wall’s creator. All he knew of the individual was they were cunning, magical, and could jump through worlds in a way that gave him a pang of jealousy. With the help of the sphere, he’d come very close to getting a glimpse of him or her tonight.

  The breeze flowed in his long dark hair and billowed through his open robe as he stepped out onto the balcony. He looked out at the open night sky. Golden stars winked in the clear expanse of midnight blue, and an ocean of pink clouds stretched as far as he could see just under the balcony, obstructing his view of anything under them. Unfortunately, the opulence of his castle, the unsurpassed beauty of Mordian, along with wealth and pleasure, was losing its flavor for Lachlan. He’d grown depressed.

  In the last year, Mordian had taken over many worlds. His lust for eternal power was boundless, but his desire was never satisfied. Regia was supposed to have been an easy snatch and grab. Being thwarted only intensified his hunger for the Heart of that world. Since he still didn’t have it, the desire to capture and consume the person who created the wall was more seductive than the world itself. Perhaps spilling their blood would slacken his thirst for a while.

  He held up the sphere and gazed into its moving, cosmic depths. The light signature of Regia’s wall creator held steady at the moment. Their essence was as beautiful as a dark nebula. He knew they would taste good.

  “Sire?”

  Lachlan didn’t turn to acknowledge Peyton. He came up behind him and ran his hands intimately up and down on his shoulders.

  “Don’t touch me,” Lachlan snapped. “Until I’ve found a witch, or another female I can procreate with, I’m abstaining.”

  “As you wish,” he backed away.

  Lachlan turned then, eyeing his long-term consort. Peyton had an angry look. Lachlan returned it with a sardonic smile.

  “Such a disrespectful look, Peyton.” He tsked. “Speak your mind.”

  “All the witches are dead. You’ll never find one.”

  “Perhaps... I still have hope. And when I find one, she will be my queen, and bear me children.”

  “What if you find one and she’s ugly?”

  “You’re so narrow-minded. It’s not her beauty I’m interested in, but her womb. Now leave me alone. You’re too obsessed with your own beauty to be of any use to me.”

  “Actually, I do have news I know you care about.”

  “Well?”

  “The last of our scouts have died.”

  “Good,” Lachlan said. “About time.”

  “Are you planning to make any more?” Peyton was apprehensive.

  Lachlan gave him a wide smile. “Scared I’d choose you? Relax. You’ve never displeased me that much. And no. No more scouts for now. I won’t totally rule it out in the future, but I think we might have moved well beyond those methods.”

  Peyton let his relief show.

  Lachlan rolled his eyes. “You’ve shown too much of your feelings on the matter, Peyton, and given me a great weapon against you. Idiot…If that is all, leave now.”

  Peyton curled his lip but bowed and walked away.

  Once he was gone, Lachlan raised the sphere back up to his face, dragging his tongue over the cool, hard surface in one long lick. “I will own you, wall builder…whoever you are.”

  Chapter Six

  Maggie didn’t pester X while he was working in his shop, which was most of the time. After two weeks, he’d made himself a hatchet, a woodcutting axe, arrowheads, a dagger, and completed his executioner’s axe. When he needed a break, he took long walks alone, but he always came back by dinner time. With each passing day, she grew less and less anxious about his progression with his power. It seemed to her that he’d made peace with being a magic user. There were short bursts of time he became obviously angry, but he battled his inner demons in silence, pouring his fury into the metal he shaped.

  She desired to talk to him more, but she didn’t push, mostly because once he’d finished his day’s work and eaten his dinner, he was exhausted. He said his sight felt natural to him now. It was time for her to direct him on the next level of his ability. She suspected he was thinking about it and putting it off out of fear, but then one morning X proved her wrong.

  He woke her before the dawn, not with his usual anvil music, but a soft knock to her door. Barely coherent, she rolled out of bed and opened the door. The cool morning air breathed on her, waking her fully. X looked at her expectantly. He was clean, bright-eyed, and holding his woodcutting axe.

  “I’m going to begin construction on my house today. Are there any trees in particular you don’t want me to cut down?”

  “Yeah, there are.” She yawned and wrapped a shawl around her shoulders before heading outside with him.

  Maggie pointed out the trees she wanted left alone.

  “Is that it?” he asked.

  “Yes. Just those. Otherwise, I don’t care. Take your pick.”

  He smiled at her then, causing her to blink a few times. This was the first time she’d seen genuine happiness in his face.

  “Ah, good. You didn’t point out the one I really want.”

  Intrigued, Maggie smirked and crossed her arms over her chest. “Do you mind if I watch you?”

  “I guess not. But it might look a bit…odd. I was going to try something before I cut it down. I’ll need to concentrate, so you’ll have to promise to not interrupt me.”

  More than a little intrigued now, she nodded. “You won’t even know I’m there.”

  X approached a large tree and set his axe down on the ground. He removed his gloves. His hands began glowing faintly.

  “You will be with me always,” he whispered to the tree as he placed his hands flat on the trunk.

  She couldn’t see the way he could, but her eyes caught the hazy edges as the spirit of the tree retracted from the leaves and branches, sliding down to the base, and straight into his hands. He closed his eyes, his forearms trembling. She saw the shiver go through him.

  X exhaled and opened his eyes. “Thank you,” his voice was quiet as he held his hands together.

  He looked over at her.

  She walked up to him, looking intently at his hands. The glow faded into nothing. “You’ve got the spirit inside? You’re holding it there?”

  He nodded. “I’m holding it. It’s not without effort. The spirit is trying to leave. If it doesn’t settle in a moment, I’ll let it loose. I was just hoping it would be content to remain with me.”

  Maggie’s affection for him grew in that moment.

  The next second he grimaced in pain and pulled the front of his sh
irt open. Smoke rose off his skin and black lines traced on his chest next to the antler mark, as if an invisible person tattooed him.

  “Wait, please,” he said to the spirit trying to push out of him, placing his hand over the growing marks. “Stay with me.”

  The smoke stopped. He pulled his hand away. The silhouette of the tree on his chest was no longer black, but a pale grey, like the ring around his neck.

  “Well?” Maggie asked.

  He smiled at her. “It broke into pieces and left, but one small sliver remained. It chose to stay with me!”

  “I’m impressed, X, really.”

  “Do you think I’m ready to move on? Are you read to teach me more?”

  “Yes, to both of your questions.”

  “I’ve been going over it in my head a lot the last few days. I thought I could go to the other village close by; I don’t know anyone there. I would take my axe and see if there’s a way I might be needed there as an executioner…When I say it out loud, it sounds stupid. But I have this feeling.” He put his hand to his stomach. “I’ve dreamed about it. I think it will work.”

  “You’re not scared?”

  “Not scared, no. I know the reality of ending life, even guilty life, will probably not be like the way it is in my head. I feel unease but not fear. If I had anything to lose, I think I’d be afraid. Having nothing is miserable, but also freeing in a way.”

  Maggie’s eyes widened in an I just got an idea kind of way. “When were you planning on going?”

  He shrugged. “Tomorrow or the next day.”

  “I know I said I wouldn’t give you anymore abilities before you mastered your current one, but…”

  He smiled and held up his hand to silence her. “I think I know where you are going, and I’ve already thought of it. It’s the only reason I would ever consider being an executioner. If you give me the power to see the truth in people, I will know if someone is guilty or not.”

  “Yes! But have thought about what do you plan to do if they aren’t? If you don’t kill them someone else will, you know.”