The Seer
Page 35
“More like a herd dog than a puppy. Although I may have overdone it here and there. I’d forgotten how fragile humans are. I nearly broke the Seer when I first came upon him by not shielding my power enough. Oops, my bad. Luckily, he was drugged at the time and I reacted quickly, so no real harm was done.”
It giggled, but Bryn continued to scowl.
“Obviously, I am not so particular as you,” it continued with an indulgent smile and a shrug. “I am worshipped, but not in the way others of my kind are. I am worshipped more in deed and consequence than thought, and so I grow fond of my most faithful acolytes. Wherever mischief goes, so does my heart, even if my devotees do not know whom they serve. Besides, all the portents said they must remain on the path or the worst will happen. Who cares if I had to help them along a little.”
It sounded a little defensive now, as if it were talking to someone else. Bryn sat silently for a moment, trying to puzzle through all it had said until an unpleasant thought occurred to him.
“But if you revel in discord, shouldn’t you want the opposite of the prophecy? I mean, wouldn’t you be rooting for the other side? Unless you’re already helping them too.”
Its answering smile wasn’t particularly comforting, but it said, “I’m the god of mischief, just a little harmless fun. I’m not the god of chaos and destruction. Humans didn’t create that in its elemental sense. Chaos is an unstoppable law of the universe that humans constantly strive against, not a god they can summon through thought and deed. I’m just here to make it a little more interesting.” Its smile fell away and it leaned forward. “If the other side wins, there will be no more harmless fun, the game will be over, and I can’t allow that.”
“So why are you leaving now?”
“I told you. I can’t make it too easy. That would be cheating.”
Before Bryn could come up with anything else to say, the other simply vanished. Bryn searched the ground for any living creature it could have turned into but found nothing. Even the strange scent of it had disappeared.
“I have more questions,” Bryn yelled. Nothing but a slight breeze tousled his dark hair in answer.
More from Rowan McAllister
Chronicles of the Riftlands: Book One
After centuries of traveling the continent of Kita and fighting the extradimensional monsters known as Riftspawn, mage Lyuc is tired and ready to back away from the concerns of humanity.
But the world isn’t done with him yet.
While traveling with a merchant caravan, Lyuc encounters Yan, an Unnamed, the lowest caste in society. Though Yan has nothing but his determination and spirit, he reminds Lyuc what passion and desire feel like. While wild magic, a snarky, shapeshifting, genderfluid companion, and the plots of men and monsters seem determined to keep Lyuc from laying down his burden, only Yan’s inimitable spirit tempts him to hang on for another lifetime or so.
All Yan wants is to earn the sponsorship of a guild so he can rise above his station, claim a place in society, and build the family he never had.
After hundreds of years of self-imposed penance, all Lyuc wants is Yan.
If they can survive prejudice, bandits, mercenaries, monsters, and nature itself, they might both get their wish… and maybe even their happily ever after.
Chronicles of the Riftlands: Book Two
Brother Tasnerek, one of the infamous Thirty-Six stone bearers, is facing a dangerous crisis of faith after uncovering a secret that could shake the foundations of the Brotherhood of Harot. When Tas is sent to protect a tiny village on the edge of Rassa’s borders from Riftspawn, he struggles to resume his duties, risking his life and the lives of those around him.
Girik has always been an outsider, but to help his sick mother, he agrees to be the village’s offering in a painful ritual deemed necessary by the Brotherhood. But when the priest has a crisis of conscience, Girik offers his help to untangle a web of lies—even if it means getting closer than he ever imagined and committing sacrilege in the process.
With a monster lurking in the forest, a wandering mage mysteriously appearing, and more secrets awakening to unravel the truths of their world, Tas and Girik must make grave decisions. A life without danger seems a far-off hope, but love just might be theirs… if they survive.
It’s time to wipe his feet of the idea that he’s not good enough to be loved.
Danny Dorfmann is dependable, no matter what’s going on in his own life. So when widower Asa needs a sitter for his dog, Minion, Danny is the natural choice. Besides, Danny’s had a crush on Asa—a hot architect who’s way out of his league—for years.
Asa is just climbing out of his grief over the loss of his husband and trying to reclaim his life. Love and dating aren’t on his radar, but as one favor turns into another and he spends more time with Danny, romance sneaks up on them.
Friendly adventures gradually turn into something deeper, but a manipulative roommate and interfering family and friends want to douse the slow burn building between Danny and Asa. To keep the chances of a happily ever after going, Danny will have to take a stand—and to hold on to the man of his dreams, he’ll have to stop letting everybody walk all over him.
Though born into wealth and privilege, Jordan Thorndike can’t keep pretending. He’s never going to become the lawyer his parents hope for… or provide the daughter-in-law and two-point-four grandkids they expect. Faced with an ultimatum—carry on living the lie or get out—Jordan leaves with only what he can pack in his BMW.
Homeless, jobless, directionless, Jordan heads to one of his mother’s pet charities: Better the Second Time Around Rescue ranch. With his family name and charm, he has the staff eating out of his hand in no time—except for one man.
Russ has never been handed anything, and he resents the spoiled rich brat using the ranch to live out a fantasy. Though Jordan is determined to prove himself to Russ through hard work, family and old wounds complicate matters. Will Jordan realize that what he sees as an escape is real life for most people? And can Russ accept that Jordan can grow—and that he wants him?
In Victorian London, during a prolonged and pernicious fog, fantasy and reality are about to collide—at least in one man’s troubled mind.
A childhood fever left Arthur Middleton, Viscount Campden, seeing and hearing things no one else does, afraid of the world outside, and unable to function as a true peer of the realm. To protect him from himself—and to protect others from him—he spends his days heavily medicated and locked in his rooms, and his nights in darkness and solitude, tormented by visions, until a stranger appears.
This apparition is different. Fox says he’s a thief and not an entirely good sort of man, yet he returns night after night to ease Arthur’s loneliness without asking for anything in return. Fox might be the key that sets Arthur free, or he might deliver the final blow to Arthur’s tenuous grasp on sanity. Either way, real or imaginary, Arthur needs him too much to care.
Fox is only one of the many secrets and specters haunting Campden House, and Arthur will have to face them all in order to live the life of his dreams.
Readers love the Chronicles of the Riftlands by Rowan McAllister
The Wanderer
“…an excellent action/adventure in an exotic setting, and I enjoyed it from beginning to end.”
—Rainbow Book Reviews
“The Wanderer takes us on the beginning of a journey into a world we have never experienced before. It is a beautiful beginning to a series I eagerly await to see unfold.”
—The Novel Approach
“It was an absolutely lovely fantasy story and if we are lucky a wonderful indicator of what we will have in store as the story progresses.
—Love Bytes
The Priest
“Full of fascinating fantasy world-building, engaging characters, and a new plot twist to the overall arc, it was everything I could have hoped for from a sequel.”
—Divine Magazine
“The Priest is another excellent addition to the
Chronicles of the Riftlands. It has the same fantastic character development and riveting story arc that made The Wanderer so amazing.”
—Joyfully Jay
ROWAN MCALLISTER is an unapologetically romantic jack-of-all-trades and a sucker for good food, good cocktails, rich fibers, a great beat, and anything else that indulges the senses. In addition to a continuing love affair with words, she likes to play with textiles, metal, wood, stone, and whatever other interesting scraps of life she can get her hands on. She lives in the woods on the very edge of suburbia—where civilization drops off and nature takes over—sharing her home with her patient, loving, and grounded husband, her three rescues, and a whole lot of books, booze, and fabric. Her chosen family is made up of a madcap collection of people as diverse as her interests, all of whom act as her muses in so many ways, and she would be lost without them. Whether her stories have a historical, fantasy, or contemporary setting, they always feature characters who still believe in true love, happy endings, and the oft-underappreciated value of sarcasm.
Email: rowanmcallister10@gmail.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/rowanmcallister10
Twitter: @RowanMcallister
By Rowan McAllister
Cherries on Top
Danny Doormat
Feels Like Home
Green the Whole Year ’Round
Hot Mess
Lost in the Outcome
My Only Sunshine
Power Bottom?
A Promise of Tomorrow
The Second Time Around
We Met in Dreams
CHRONICLES OF THE RIFTLANDS
The Wanderer
The Priest
The Seer
A DEVIL’S OWN LUCK
A Devil’s Own Luck
Never a Road Without a Turning
ELEMENTAL HARMONY
Air and Earth
Water and Fire
Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
Published by
DREAMSPINNER PRESS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
The Seer
© 2021 Rowan McAllister
Cover Art
© 2021 Paul Richmond
http://www.paulrichmondstudio.com/
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. 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 the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.
Trade Paperback ISBN: 978-1-64405-908-1
Digital ISBN: 978-1-64405-907-4
Digital eBook published March 2021
v. 1.0
Printed in the United States of America