Andrea nodded. ‘You know, I think I can tell when it’s Penny speaking now. The tone’s a little different. Cygnus doesn’t have Penny’s insecurities.’
‘I don’t have as many insecurities as I did,’ Penny replied, giving a slight smile. ‘I… had a revelation.’
‘Oh?’
‘Beauty’s only skin deep, right?’
‘That’s what they say?’
‘Ugly is in your head. I mean it’s a state of mind. I always thought I was ugly. I was the ugly duckling and Cygnus is the swan. It’s why I picked the name. June always said I was stupid, I was never ugly, maybe not attractive, but never ugly and… she was right.’
Andrea laughed. ‘She’s a bright girl. What convinced you?’
‘Ultranova. For all he was a good-looking guy, he was ugly on the inside and I think he knew it. Everyone saw the charming exterior and they kind of glossed over the fact that he behaved like a total prick even when he wasn’t killing people and selling drugs.’
‘That’s pretty deep.’
‘I’ve been rather introspective recently.’
‘A little self-reflection is good for you, but do you want to see if you can beat me up now?’
Cygnus grinned and dropped into a ready stance. ‘You know you’ll probably kick my ass, don’t you?’
‘There’s a high probability of that, yeah, but we learn most from our mistakes.’
‘That’s pretty deep,’ Cygnus replied, grinning.
‘Shut up and try to hit me.’
Epilogue
Schatten Schloss, Italy, 1st January, 2014.
Somewhere high above, in the clear night sky, the moon was new and, as everyone else celebrated the turn of the year, David Lazlo Durant stood in the deepest chamber of the castle encircled by six candles. He was not attending a party this year, and he had no family to be with. His purpose was far different.
Schatten Schloss was old, very old. It had been built so long ago that no one was entirely sure when the first stones had been set. There had been work done since. The keep had been extended upward and a somewhat fairy-tale tower added, an outer wall had been added at some time in the fourteenth century. Some of the chambers in the accommodation areas had been refitted several times. Plumbing had been installed around nineteen-twenty. This room had never changed, not since it was first cut from the rock of the Alps.
Now the stone lining was vanishing into shadow as darkness seeped in and began to surround him. It crawled across the floor, sneaking between the iron candle stands and then rising to envelope the flames. It barely paused around the light and then rushed in once that was gone. Durant could almost feel it wrapping around him and he was instantly cold. Even though he had done this many times, the blackness still chilled him right through to the core, bringing with it the fear Mankind had felt in the darkness since the dawn of the species.
‘You have found her.’ The voice was a whisper, but it rang in his ears, apparently coming from all around him, from a great distance and right beside him all at once.
‘We have,’ Durant replied. ‘She is young, inexperienced, and she has no idea of her potential…’
‘Of course she does not. If she did, she would be with us already. She must be made ready.’
‘We have operatives in place, some of our most experienced Scribes and Shades have moved into the city in preparation.’
‘On the fourth new moon I will be ready for her. See that you are.’
The darkness vanished leaving Durant gasping for breath. The conversation, he knew, had taken place in an instant, but his lungs were seared with the cold of it and it was hard to breathe.
The fourth new moon. He knew the lunar calendar well and that set the timescales. He knew what needed to be done. On the thirtieth night of March, Andrea Morgan had to die.
###
About the Author
I was born in the vicinity of Hadrian's Wall so perhaps a bit of history rubbed off. Ancient history obviously, and border history, right on the edge of the Empire. I always preferred the Dark Ages anyway; there’s so much more room for imagination when people aren’t writing down every last detail. So my idea of a good fantasy novel involved dirt and leather, not shining plate armour and Hollywood-medieval manners. The same applies to my sci-fi, really; I prefer gritty over shiny.
Oddly, then, one of the first fantasy novels I remember reading was The Dark Is Rising, by Susan Cooper (later made into a terrible juvenile movie). These days we would call Cooper’s series Young Adult Contemporary Fantasy and looking back on it, it influenced me a lot. It has that mix of modern day life, hidden history, and magic which failed to hit popular culture until the early days of Buffy and Anne Rice. Of course, Cooper’s characters spend their time around places I could actually visit in Cornwall, and South East England, and mid-Wales. In fact, when I went to university in Aberystwyth, it was partially because some of Cooper’s books were set a few miles to the north around Tywyn.
I got into writing through roleplaying, however, so my early work was related to the kind of roleplaying game I was interested in. I wrote science fiction when I was playing Traveller. I wrote “high fantasy” when I was playing Dungeons & Dragons. I wrote a lot of superhero fiction when I was playing City of Heroes. I still love the idea of a modern world with magic in it and I’ve been trying to write a novel based on this for a long time. As with any form of expression, practice is the key and I can look back on all the aborted attempts at books, and the more successful short stories, as steps along the path to the Thaumatology Series.
Writing, sadly, is not my main source of income. By day, I’m a computer programmer. I work for a telecommunications company in Manchester, England. My favourite authors are Terry Pratchett, Susan Cooper, and (recently) Kim Harrison. Kim’s Hollows books were what finally spurred me to publish something, even if the trail to here came by way of Susan, back in school, several decades ago.
For More Information
The Thaumatology Blog: http://thaumatology.wordpress.com
The Steel Beneath the Skin Blog: http://steelbeneaththeskin.wordpress.com
Other Books by this Author
The Thaumatology Series
Thaumatology 101 - ASIN: B006IYIESW
Demon’s Moon - ASIN: B006JPN7A0
Legacy - ASIN: B006OKR8PK
Dragon’s Blood - ASIN: B0072S1DOU
Disturbia - ASIN: B007GNICZO
Hammer of Witches - ASIN: B007YG2I44
Eagle’s Shadow - ASIN: B008E17TYW
Ancient - ASIN: B00923F8AS
Dragonfall - ASIN: B00AKV95XW
The Other Side of Hell - ASIN: B00AS0NF54
For Whom the Wedding Bells Toll - ASIN: B00BNSQ4AS
Vengeance – Coming Soon
Anthologies in the Thaumatology Universe
Tales from High Towers’ Study - ASIN: B006ZAJ7TY
Tales from the Dubh Linn - ASIN: B0080XPD88
The Aneka Jansen Books
Steel Beneath The Skin - ASIN: B00D4MN40O
The Cold Steel Mind - ASIN: B00FJIQ85O
Steel Heart - ASIN: B00H0GYRQA
The Winter War - ASIN: B00I6HRXAE
The Greatest Heights of Honour - ASIN: B00JHEOI26
Table of Contents
Part One: Cygnus Rising
Part Two: Twilight
Part Three: Fire, Light, and Bullets
Part Four: For Ever
Part Five: Falling
Part Six: The New Protector of New Millennium
Epilogue
Table of Contents
Part One: Cygnus Rising
Part Two: Twilight
Part Three: Fire, Light, and Bullets
Part Four: For Ever
Part Five: Falling
Part Six: The New Protector of New Millennium
Epilogue
Ultrahuman 01 - Ugly Page 33
