Descent
The Gryphon Series
Resurrection
Part One
Written by
Stacey Rourke
Copyright © 2015 Stacey Rourke
Published by Anchor Group Publishing
PO Box 551
Flushing, MI 48433
Anchorgrouppublishing.com
All rights reserved. Published by Anchor Group. 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 written permission from the publisher.
Cover Design by KD Designs
Editing & Proofing by There for You Editing, Melanie Williams, and Cheree Castellanos
Other Titles by Stacey Rourke:
Gryphon Series
The Conduit
Embrace
Sacrifice
Ascension
The Legends Saga
Crane
Raven
Steam
Stand Alone:
Adapted for Film
I said if the readers wanted it, I would venture back to Gainesboro. To all my fans, this one is for you!
Prologue
Moments Before Celeste Battled the Countess
“When they catch you—and that’s a when not an if—you tell them you went to smoke form and clung to a Protector who was plane jumping, do not mention my name. Understood?”
My lip curled in disgust and a healthy dose of judgment. “It’s really that easy to break into this joint? Don’t tell me stuff like that! It makes me rethink trading my pesky evil streak for my good-guy merit badge.”
Terin glanced my way. Red flames burned within her irises like smoldering embers as she hitched one auburn eyebrow in disbelief. “You’ve been conformed for all of … what, five minutes? I’m not convinced you couldn’t be swayed back to your more dominate nature with the promise of a cookie.”
“Give me a little credit!” I argued. “It would have to be a really good cookie. With white and dark chocolate chips in it.”
“Do you want to know how to get there, or continue to listen to yourself talk?” she asked, jabbing her thumb in the opposite direction of my intended target. “Because either way, I’m out of here in about thirty seconds.”
“Easy, Vesuvius,” I soothed. “Please, bestow your wisdom.”
The curvaceous ginger’s mouth, which was normally fixed in a stoic frown, twisted to the side as she fought off an almost grin. “That was actually a good one.”
I turned my palms skyward and gave her a “well, duh” look.
A blink and any trace of emotion washed away. “See those double doors?”
I followed her raised hand and nodded my confirmation.
Anxious hands trembling, Terin fumbled with the clasp of her plum-colored cloak. Freeing it from the fastener, she let it fall from her shoulders. “Through there you will find another long hallway, identical to this one. The Council Master’s office is there, so keep your head down, hood up, and don’t dawdle. The hall ends in a T. At its end, turn to the right. The Hall of the Magi is at the end of that hallway. Trust me, even you can’t miss it.”
“I’m not sure I like the implications of that remark. It makes me think you don’t believe I have a brain beneath this roguishly handsome façade.” My hand brushed her as I took the cloak she offered me and shrugged it up my arms.
“As your friend, I can only hope someday you find someone that is as attracted to you as you are.” The grinding of her teeth became visible in her tightly clenched jaw. “Do you have any idea what you’re going to say when you get in there?”
Thumbing the lone button of the cloak through its fastener, I let one shoulder rise and fall in a casual shrug. “Would ‘make love, not war’ be inappropriate?”
Terin’s frown deepened. “Very much so.”
“Huh. Guess I’ll just have to wing it then.” Grinning, I flipped the hood up over my head.
“Rowan!” Terin called out the moment I took my first step toward the double doors.
I swiveled back, forcing a confident smirk that contradicted my knotted gut. “What’s the matter, Red? Need a hug good-bye?” I teased, tagging on a playful wink.
Ignoring my antics, stress lines etched deep divots between her brows. “As soon as you walk in, head straight to the symbol tiled into the floor and take a knee. Any other posture will be viewed as a threat and they will kill you on the spot.”
“Kneel or die. Got it.” I jerked my chin in a brief nod.
Her apricot lips parted to say … something. Quickly rethinking it, she clamped them shut again.
“Good luck,” she muttered in place of whatever had been plaguing her, and flicked her gaze to the doors in a signal for me to go.
Our history was a deeply weaved one. If she was the last person I ever spoke to, a simple good-bye seemed inadequate.
“You know this makes us even, right?” I mused in lieu of a deep sentiment.
“No.” Head shaking, sadness tugged down the corners of her mouth. “We’ll never be even, Rowan. You know that.”
A brief beat—in which we exchanged looks of mutual understanding—passed, then I turned on my heel and marched off. I didn’t have to look back to know Terin vanished. The temperature of the room dropped about ten degrees in her departure. It was all on me. Fortunately, I worked better solo. No one to wrinkle their noses about my rather questionable ethics—or lack thereof.
Shoes squeaking over the white marble floor, I strode down the hallway, following Terin’s instructions carefully. At the chatter of two nearing men, with wide spanned wings tucked in tight behind them, I fixed my stare on the floor. I contemplated unleashing a bit of violence. It was cardio day, and I could use the thrill. Better judgment reminded me that the ruckus could alert others of my presence. I was the fox in Heaven’s henhouse. Being caught there was not an option … not yet at least. Opting to play it safe, I concentrated on both men and extended my influence. Whispering directly into their minds—in that fun little way I do—I assured them I was no interest to them in the slightest. They sauntered past without a moment’s hesitation. Some people consider themselves cursed by their demonic attributes. I am not one of them. Two thumbs up for mind control!
Now, nothing stood between me and my goal except for my own trepidation. That was one wailing beast I had learned to silence long ago. Outwardly calm hands rose, flipping back my hood. With a determined stride I crossed the remaining distance to the ornate doors marking the entrance to the Hall of the Magi. Filling my lungs, I gripped the hand-carved doorknob; the top half was a gryphon, the bottom a phoenix. Exhaling a cleansing breath through pursed lips, I yanked open the heavy, cherry wood door.
I was prepared to stare my fears in the face.
If necessary, I would offer myself as a sacrifice.
Even flat out begging was not out of the realm of possibilities.
All of this, and more, I would subject myself to … for her.
Celeste Garrett—that mahogany haired, hot-head—had somehow wriggled into my blood stream. She was the hero of the people. Be that as it may, what she needed now was for someone to save her. Which was exactly what I intended to do.
The sounds of my steps padding across the floor echoed through the cavernous hall. Lit only by dim torches lining the perimeter of the room, I was in no way fooled into believing I was alone in the darkness. Energy crackled around me; its intent menacing and predatory. The threat was so palpable in the air I half expected the walls to grow fangs at any moment and swallow me whole.
My shuffling feet found the symbol on the floor just as Terin had
described it.
I expected a grand spectacle the moment the toe of my boot crossed the threshold of the mosaic Celtic trinity symbol. It didn’t seem a stretch of the imagination for the heavens to open and cast an ethereal light down on he who dared to tread on this hallowed ground. Unfortunately, like in any moments of great despair when I’d prayed to every god imaginable for a bit of divine intervention, I found myself utterly alone. Well, not alone in the literal sense of the word …
“Bold move coming here, pirate,” the shadows, flickering and dancing across the walls, hissed. “Surely, you know you don’t belong. That pit deep in your gut urging you to flee can attest to that.”
“Is that what that is?” I queried, my gaze flitted around the room in search of a solid form to focus on. “What a relief. I thought I ate some bad Thai.”
From within the densest fog of the inky darkness, a pair of glowing eyes emerged. Each was easily the size of my head. Smoldering lava churned and writhed with the deep vats of those piercing pupils. “It does not respect us. Insssssssulant wretch. Perhapsssssss its bones crunching between my beak will provide the needed motivation to adjust its attitude.”
“Steady, friend,” a baritone deep enough to rattle my ribs murmured from somewhere in front of me.
Bloody darkness, I mentally scoffed. Is a bit of overhead lighting really that hard to install? Even in the Underworld we managed to score a bit of track lighting to get us by.
“Remember, we still need him.” Formidable talons clicked against the marble floor. Darkness birthed forth the imposing presence of the Gryphon.
I’ve seen many a man’s share of beasties in my time, yet still the regal majesty of the creature knocked the breath from my lungs. Avian elegance combined with feline fluidity, drawing on the most prominent attributes of both.
Flaxen feathers across his broad chest ruffled and smoothed. His pointed ears perked in my direction with interest. “An end of days type battle is looming. She, whom you claim to care for, is pinned in the eye of that. Yet, here you stand. Tell me, Rowan Wade, what could have possibly torn you from the woman you vowed to protect?”
Taking a brazen step closer, my head fell back to meet his eagle eyes. Squaring my shoulders, my chin jutted forward with determination for my cause. “I want you to release her.”
I expected rage—a spontaneous eruption of violence in which the two beasts would pounce and reduce me to chum in a matter of seconds. Instead, the Gryphon cocked his head with a birdlike twitch.
He peered at me thoughtfully, as if reading every trouble scrawled on my heart. “You know, then, what she must do?”
“No! I know what you’re making her do!” I erupted, my hands balling into tight fists at my sides. “She’s your Conduit. Your prop. You are holding her here when what she should be doing is running like hell to the farthest reaches of this sodding planet where the likes of you and your kind can never find her again!”
“You think such a place exists? More importantly, you think her capable of that? Of running from her calling and those who depend on her?” The Gryphon matched my step with one of his own, inching himself farther into the light. His firm yet patient tone reminded me of a parent scolding a fussing toddler.
Maybe that’s exactly what I was when it came to her: weak and vulnerable like a babe.
“No, she would never do that. But I have a feeling your influence could be to blame,” I growled, allowing accusation to drip from my tone.
If the Gryphon noticed my deliberate insolence, he chose to ignore it. “I’m sorry, son. Her warrior spirit was there long before our bond was forged. That’s a part of who she is. I would wager it also ranks as one of the reasons you love her.”
“I am not your son!” The words gushed from my lips, fast and furious; my tongue purging my troubled soul. “And I am not leaving here until you sever that sodding bond!”
“Yes, you are, Rowan.” The firmness of his statement left no room for negotiation. “Because that is a request I cannot, and will not, honor.”
“Even though you know what it could cost her?” As I jabbed an accusing finger at his barrel chest, I felt the temperature of the room spike—the Phoenix flaring in defense of his friend.
“She won’t make it out of this alive!” I bellowed.
A menacing hiss snaked along the wall behind me. The air shifted, heat from the Phoenix stalking steadily closer.
The Gryphon craned his neck to the side, his beak snapping for his cohort to stand down. By the time he glanced back, his mask of neutrality was fixed firmly in place. “You are not the only one that cares for her. Trust that if there was another option, I would eagerly pursue it. Unfortunately, such a miracle does not exist. Not yet at least.”
Each drum of my pulse pounding in my temples chipped away at the hope I had been clinging to. “There has to be another way.” Even I heard the anchor of defeat in my tone, sinking it to the depths of despair.
“There is no other way!” The ground shook beneath my feet with the Gryphon’s first heated shout. The dominance asserted in his thundering roar would make the most ferocious of beasts cower at his feet.
For a beat, I merely stared, my tongue flicking across my lower lip. Then, with a laugh lacking in humor, I let my chin fall to my chest. Thumbing the clasp free, I allowed the cloak to drift to the floor in a pile at my feet.
“Well,” stepping free of the pooled fabric, I rolled my shoulders and shook out my arms, “I said I wasn’t leaving without you cutting ties, and I meant it. Looks like your hot-headed friend with his charcoal-scented body odor will get his wish. We’re gonna have to tangle, boys.”
The Phoenix threw his wings out wide, his flames reaching for the ceiling like malicious claws. “No weapon, no plan, no hope,” he snarled, and snapped his beak hungrily.
“Oh, there’s a plan.” I raised my fists in my best impression of Bert Lahr’s Cowardly Lion. “I plan to get in a few good swings that will, at the very least, bruise your larynx as you swallow me whole. I’ll be dead, but you’ll be on a liquid diet for a few days. Who’s really the loser there, huh?”
Air leaked past the Phoenix’s fangs, slow and deadly, in anxious anticipation.
“No!” the Gryphon rumbled. “Only by drawing strength from all those she holds dear will the Conduit stand even a glimmer of a chance at survival! I hold a deep affection for that girl. Whether you like it or not, I will see to it that you are by her side. Not for your own selfish desires, but because she needs you!”
The tendons in my neck bulged to the point of pain. A crimson haze of fury seeped in around the edges of my vision. “You care for her so deeply you would sentence her to death?”
“You speak of things you can’t begin to understand!” the Gryphon countered.
My contest to the contrary was forming on my lips when the Gryphon threw back his head. Throat bobbing, he emitted four high-pitched squawks to the ceiling.
The fur along his hackles rose, soothing as the intensity of his stare returned to me. “Your escorts to lead you out will be here soon. They’re known for being a bit rough with those that enter the hall uninvited. My suggestion? Leave before they arrive.”
“You too big a coward to handle me yourself?” I glowered.
In a blur of speed and a ruffle of feathers, the Gryphon towered over me, the heat of his breath tossing the hair from my brow. “I want you gone, not dead. However, the longer you are here, the more likely I am to alter that particular agenda.”
The Phoenix huffed his approval at the idea of my bloody demise.
The tension filled moment was interrupted by the hall doors crashing open. Three burly looking men—poster boys for illegal muscle enhancers—stormed in. While both the Gryphon and the Phoenix retreated to the shadows, the steroid brothers circled me.
“Clearly you boys don’t know who you’re dealing with.” Tilting my head, I let my influence vine into the weak minds of my would-be attackers. Their steps slowed. Their foreheads puckered as my will
overpowered theirs with ease.
Tossing the hair from my eyes, I scoffed. “It seems you under estimated the range of my—huunnh!”
I didn’t see the stealthy fourth newcomer to our little party until his volleyball-sized fist slammed into my face. The power in his punch snapped my head to the side and spun me like a top. Black blood gushed from my nose, dripping off my chin.
“For a moose of a lad, you are impressively light on your feet.” Giving praise where praise was due, I wiped at my nose with the back of my hand. “Now, as you are between me and my objective, I’m going to have to ask you to dance out of the way, twinkle toes.”
“That’s not going to happen,” the mammoth of a man rumbled.
“Pity, that.” I shrugged and drove my fist fast and hard into his kidney.
Breath was forced from his lungs in a painful wheeze. A regular bloke would’ve needed a moment to collect himself after such a strike; however, this mammoth beast needed no such pause. His glare set with murderous intent, he lashed out in two quick jabs that rocketed in before I could raise an arm to block. Strike one collided with my cheek bone in an explosion of white, hot radiating pain. The second connected just beneath my eye socket, snapping my head back and making black spots dance before my eyes. My head fogged enough to release those under my control. That was all it took. In an instant I was surrounded, my arms pinned behind me.
“Halt! Hold him steady,” the Gryphon commanded and stalked into the midst of the mayhem. “You have overstayed your nonexistent welcome, Rowan. Now, you’re needed back in Gainesboro.” His wings arced wide behind him, then curled in until the tips of his ivory feather tickled across my forehead.
Light flashed, and I was gone.
I swirled and bobbed as an eddying black wisp of smoke, unsure of where I was or where I was going. The sensation was strangely familiar to the time I rummed myself into a stupor and woke up in a wave pool. Slamming against the sides over and over, I was certain I had found myself flushed in a giant toilet.
Descent (Gryphon Series Book 5) Page 1
