The World of Samar Box Set 1 Read online

  The World of Samar

  Box Set: Volume One

  Volume 1 - 2

  ML Hamilton

  authormlhamilton.net

  The World of Samar Box Set: Volume One

  © 2019 ML Hamilton, Sacramento, CA

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the author, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review to be printed by a newspaper, magazine or journal.

  First print

  All Characters appearing in this work are fictitious. Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  This box set is dedicated to the avid fantasy readers for whom there are never enough pages. May you find hours of entertainment within.

  “We don’t create a fantasy world to escape reality. We create it to be able to stay.”

  ~Lynda Barry

  Table of Contents

  THE TALISMAN OF ELDON

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  CHAPTER 34

  CHAPTER 35

  CHAPTER 36

  CHAPTER 37

  CHAPTER 38

  CHAPTER 39

  CHAPTER 40

  EPILOGUE

  THE HEIRS OF ELDON

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1

  CHAPTER 2

  CHAPTER 3

  CHAPTER 4

  CHAPTER 5

  CHAPTER 6

  CHAPTER 7

  CHAPTER 8

  CHAPTER 9

  CHAPTER 10

  CHAPTER 11

  CHAPTER 12

  CHAPTER 13

  CHAPTER 14

  CHAPTER 15

  CHAPTER 16

  CHAPTER 17

  CHAPTER 18

  CHAPTER 19

  CHAPTER 20

  CHAPTER 21

  CHAPTER 22

  CHAPTER 23

  CHAPTER 24

  CHAPTER 25

  CHAPTER 26

  CHAPTER 27

  CHAPTER 28

  CHAPTER 29

  CHAPTER 30

  CHAPTER 31

  CHAPTER 32

  CHAPTER 33

  CHAPTER 34

  CHAPTER 35

  CHAPTER 36

  CHAPTER 37

  CHAPTER 38

  CHAPTER 39

  CHAPTER 40

  CHAPTER 41

  CHAPTER 42

  CHAPTER 43

  CHAPTER 44

  CHAPTER 45

  EPILOGUE

  THE TALISMAN OF ELDON

  EMERALD

  World of Samar: Volume One

  M L Hamilton

  www.authormlhamilton.net

  EMERALD

  Copyright © 2015 M L Hamilton

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publishers, except by a reviewer who may quote brief passages in a review to be printed by a newspaper, magazine or journal.

  Second Print

  All Characters appearing in this work are fictitious.

  Any resemblance to real persons, living or dead, is purely coincidental.

  To my dad (Vern) for being the science to my fiction;

  To my mom (Sharon) for knowing the characters as well as I did and psychically guessing where I wanted to go with them;

  To my brother (Scott) who brought Kai and his quest to life for all to see;

  To my dear friend (Eileen), whose support and editing have never failed me;

  And finally, to my three sons (Kyler, Nicholas, & Jared) who read the book and allowed me to grill them as only an English teacher can…

  You have all been a part of making this dream a reality.

  Thank you!

  One is left with the horrible feeling now

  that war settles nothing;

  that to win a war is as disastrous as to lose one.

  ~ Agatha Christie (1890 - 1976)

  PROLOGUE

  Mentor felt the labored breathing of the horse beneath him. The ground was uneven, the trees closing around him, branches snatching at his clothes, tearing at exposed skin. His hands tightened into fists on the reins and he tried to suck in air. Fear made his heart pound.

  He caught the motion of the Stravad warriors through the dense undergrowth, flanking him and his wife. He squinted and searched for Zela. Racing ahead of him, her hair streaming behind her, she rode hunched over to protect the baby in her arms.

  Water glinted through the trees and the roar of it finally reached him. Just a little farther, just a little more.

  They came upon the banks of the Rovarn, hauling back on their horses’ reins. The warriors leapt to the ground and drew their swords, fanning out to guard Zela’s back. He pulled his own mount to a halt and vaulted out of the saddle, letting the reins trail behind him.

  He surveyed their formation and felt a start as he saw their numbers. Seven. Only seven left. Shaking aside the numbing reality, he crossed to his wife’s side and lifted his arms for the baby. The look in her eyes was feral. She clutched him closer to her breast.

  “Just for a moment,” he whispered.

  She handed the baby to him and swung down from the horse. He pressed the solid weight close, then tried to give him back, but she took a step away, shaking her head, her eyes shifting to the forest.

  Eldon strode up to them, his hair wild, his eyes haunted. At his throat blazed the emerald, a beacon of green light in the shadows beneath the trees. “They’re coming. I can feel them.”

  Mentor shivered and turned, searching along the bank for a way down, his heart pounding. The visible bank was steep, rocky, choked with brambles. He couldn’t see a path to the water.

  “We have to risk it,” said Eldon.

  Zela gripped Mentor’s arm and pulled him away from the edge. He looked into her eyes and the color drained from his face. He knew what she was about to say.

  “Take the babe.” Her eyes shifted to Eldon in the gloom. “Go with him until I can follow.”

  Eldon started to protest, but she held up a hand.

  “There’s no other way. I’ll follow as soon as you’re across. I’ll delay them.”

  “You can’t stop them! You can’t fight them!”

  Her eyes glowed and her face, in all of its beauty, looked like porcelain, hard and brittle. “He needs you. He needs you to train him. Like you did for me. Like you did for Eldon.”

  He shook his head, struggling to find his voice. “I can’t. I can’t leave you.”

  “We don’t have any choice. We talked about this, we discussed this possibility. The babe is the only thing that matters. Eldon has to go with you. He is our last line of defense.” Her expression softened and she covered his hand where he clutched the baby. “The babe needs you. Our people need you.”

  “Please...” he whispered, but her expression hardened again.

  “We swore to this plan, we agreed.” Her eyes cut to Eldon. “We cannot go back on what we swore!”

  Eldon looked away.

  “They’re coming!” shouted one of the warriors.

  He saw movement behind her. The warriors raised their bows and took aim. Arrows whistled through the air and struck something metallic, the hollow ping echoing through the trees. The warriors’ shots had found their mark, and yet, the Gaviston came on, unflinching, unfaltering.

  He felt his heart miss a beat. His wife turned to him. “You have a duty! Nothing else matters!”

  “I can’t leave you here!”

  “If you stay, you kill both of us. You kill our people!”

  Eldon moved then, grabbing two of the horses and shoving the reins into Mentor’s hands. “Come on! It’s decided.”

  Mentor stared at his wife, but the look in her eyes chilled him.

  “Go!”

  He turned and struggled into the saddle, holding the baby close. A scream rent the air and his attention was yanked to the line of warriors. Silver bodies swarmed through the trees, falling on the Stravad, tearing into them.

  Panic overwhelmed him, froze him in his seat, but Eldon’s hands closed over the reins and turned the horse’s head. Mentor had to grab for the saddle horn to keep himself from being pitched off the animal’s back as they careened over the edge of the bank, slipping and sliding toward the water.

  Wresting the reins away from Eldon, he pulled the horse’s head up and redistributed his weight as the animal plunged into the swiftly moving current. The shock of the cold water against his body sucked the breath from his lungs and he lifted the baby above it, holding
him against his shoulder.

  A whimper escaped the baby, but it was lost in the roar of water and the screams from above. Closing his eyes and trying to block out the sound, he allowed the horse to carry them into the current, its muscles straining.

  Waves battered over him, soaking both him and the baby, making his teeth chatter and his hands tighten into claws on the reins. He squinted through the water streaming off his face, searching for the opposite bank, but all he saw was the cresting waves between him and the shore. He didn’t dare look back.

  A branch slammed into the side of the horse, tearing into both man and beast, and he looked down to see red spread across the white foam of the waves, but whether it was his own blood or the horse’s, he wasn’t sure.

  The baby squirmed in his arms, a wail rising from the sodden blankets, and he had to tighten his hold. Another wave crested over them, sucking the breath from his lungs and choking off the child’s cry. He wanted to lower the baby and see if he was all right, but he didn’t dare chance it, not yet. After all they’d risked, to lose the baby now would be more than he could accept.

  Then he caught sight of the opposite bank and a moment later, the horse found purchase in the gravel on the river’s bottom. Scrambling up onto the shore, the beast tried to shake water from its mane, but Eldon was there, grabbing the reins and hauling them toward the bank.

  “Keep moving!”

  “No!” Tearing the reins from Eldon’s hands, Mentor whipped the horse’s head around and looked at the opposite bank.

  A moan escaped him and he started to ride back toward the river’s edge, but Eldon blocked him with his own mount.

  “It’s too late! Remember your promise!”

  He sank back in the saddle, his chest heaving, water flowing down his face, clutching the baby tightly in his arms.

  On the opposite bank lay his wife.

  Lining the shore, glinting in the sunlight, was a line of Gaviston.

  CHAPTER 1

  Kai narrowed grey eyes and focused his attention on the glass. It wobbled on the table, wobbled then stood still. Grimacing, he drew in his will and focused on it again. Water sloshed around the inside and settled. Frustration rose inside of him, heating his face and making him clench his fists. He felt the power respond, felt it slip his control. The glass went sailing through the air, until it collided with the wall and shattered. Glass shards rained onto the floor and the water beaded along the grains of wood on the wall.

  “Tafoya...”

  The old man opened his faded blue eyes and raised one white brow. “When you were younger, you could do this without thinking about it. You’ve suppressed your power for too long. Control by giving up control.” He glanced at his own glass. It rose from the side table and glided through the air, hovering in front of Kai.

  Kai shivered. Even though the power was a part of him, he couldn’t get used to the idea that Tafoya also had it. That is Tafoya and no other in all of DiNolfol. He reached up and curled his fingers around the stem.

  “I can’t do it.”

  Tafoya’s other brow arched. “Can’t isn’t a word in my vocabulary.”

  “I know. You’ve told me over and over again.”

  “Then why do you use it?”

  Kai knew better than to answer. This sort of conversation could go on and on, an endless circle of frustration.

  “Try again.”

  Kai shook his head, then ran a hand through his black hair. “Not today, please.”

  The old man curled his long fingers over the arms of his chair. Kai’s eyes were drawn to those hands, hands that had seen many years, many events. “Then when?”

  Kai drew a deep breath and rolled to his feet in a smooth, youthful motion. He paced the length of Tafoya’s parlor, stopping before the many rows of books. Reaching out he fingered a gold lettered spine, wishing he could read the foreign words. So many things he didn’t know, but he hungered for the knowledge. His father would laugh at him for wanting something he thought was foolish; Tafoya, on the other hand, would demand to know why he couldn’t have it if he wanted it badly enough.

  “Do you have any idea how hard this is for me?”

  “Lifting the glass without smashing it on my wall?”

  Kai turned his back to the books and gave the old man an aggravated look. He hated it when Tafoya feigned ignorance. Kai knew no one else who had as sharp an intellect.

  “No, I mean the way you and my father pull me in two different directions.”

  Tafoya’s face gave nothing away. In fact, Kai wouldn’t have known he’d struck a nerve if he hadn’t caught the minute tightening of the old man’s hands on his chair. “I see.”

  Kai felt some of his frustration drain away. He couldn’t stay angry at Tafoya for long, although he found himself angry at him often.

  “That’s the problem. You don’t see, or you don’t understand, but at least you listen. My father doesn’t even do that.”

  Pale blue eyes studied him and Kai resisted the impulse to squirm. “In which direction do you find yourself leaning?”

  “Neither.”

  “Which do you want more?”

  Kai swallowed against the lump lodged in his throat. “I don’t know, but I know I don’t want to be king.”

  “Why not?”

  “Because how can I rule anyone when I don’t even know what I want?”

  “And you think the king knows this?”

  Kai shrugged. “He seems to. He seems to have no doubts.”

  Again a white brow arched. “Only stupid men have no doubts and although I’m not fond of Ferenc, I’ve never mistaken him for a stupid man.”

  Kai took his seat on the rug again, folding his hands over his crossed knees. “This is pointless. There’s only one direction for me, so we might as well drop it. I’m the heir to the throne of DiNolfol, and with talk of war, my father isn’t going to entertain anything else. He’s having a difficult enough time raising an army amongst farmers.”

  “This war isn’t going to be won by armies.” Tafoya’s eyes lowered and took on a far-off look.

  Kai gave a bark of laughter. “Armies and war sort of go together, Tafoya. Can’t have one without the other.”

  The old man’s eyes lifted and fixed on Kai. He leaned forward in his chair. “You mark my words, Kiameron. This is not like any war Humans have fought. This one can’t be won by brute force. It’ll take something more – the legacy of Eldon reborn.”

  “A myth – that’s what’s going to fight this war?”

  Tafoya leaned back in his chair. “Scoff as you will, but tell me your dream last night.”

  A chill raced down his spine. Swallowing hard, he searched the older man’s face, yet he wasn’t surprised. It wasn’t the first time Tafoya had known too much. He opened his mouth to tell him he’d dreamed nothing, but Tafoya’s servant interrupted them.

  Theron cleared his throat at the entrance to the parlor. “The castle guards have been and gone, looking for the young lord, and the Daman, Niron, is waiting by the kitchen door for him.”

  Tafoya nodded without turning around, his eyes still locked on Kai’s. Kai glanced at the servant. “Thank you, Theron.”

  The servant bowed and backed from the room, closing the door behind him. Kai looked back at the old man. “I have to go.”

  Tafoya nodded.

  Kai rose to his feet and stared down into the weathered face. “You expect too much, Tafoya.”

  “Do I?” He lifted a gnarled hand and curled it over his bearded chin. “I wonder sometimes, Kiameron, if I expect enough.”

  “You also talk in riddles.” He headed for the door.

  “I’ll see you the day after tomorrow.”

  Kai halted and glanced back. “Don’t count on it. I probably won’t be able to get away.”

  He received no response. He waited a moment more, then opened the door and stepped into the hallway beyond. Closing it behind him, he leaned on it and closed his eyes. For some reason he felt like he’d dodged something significant by avoiding the old man’s questions. He’d have been lying to say he hadn’t been having disturbing dreams lately, but Tafoya already asked for too much from him.

  * * *

  The Audience Chamber was in chaos when Kai arrived back at the castle. The prince peered through a crack in the enormous paneled doors that opened on the chamber, trying to count the number of people rushing back and forth. He always felt intimidated by his father’s Audience Chamber. In the first place, the entire room didn’t have a single window. Natural light filtered through a beveled skylight recessed into the ceiling. The ceiling itself was domed, causing sound to echo off the stone walls and ricochet out of the corners, creating a disturbing cacophony.