Landreann (eBook)

The Legends

B B. Baker (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2022 | 1. Auflage
574 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
978-1-6678-1508-4 (ISBN)

Infos

Landreann is under threat of destruction. Can two Kingdoms come together, setting decades of misunderstandings and long-held secrets aside in order to save it? Join with the Mages and Dragons of Legend as this journey of love, war, and adventure unfolds.

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Landreann is under threat of destruction. Can two Kingdoms come together, setting decades of misunderstandings and long-held secrets aside in order to save it? Join with the Mages and Dragons of Legend as this journey of love, battle, and adventure unfolds. Princess Vallishia, a Dragon Rider and woman who bows to no man, agrees to wed the overbearing Prince Siden, but can she live with the choice? Prince Siden agrees to marry the Princess but pledges never to love her. He's gambled on love before and won't do so again. The epic tale masterfully weaves the most popular aspects of fantasy into a bundle of daring that you won't want to miss.

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Siden braced an arm on the edge of the window and stared out at what remained of Ravenside. A Kingdom that once had been one of the greatest places in Landreann but was nothing more than a cesspit now. A muscle in his jaw ticked.

The whispered argument behind him made him want to throw something. He hadn’t even been asked before the council and his Father had sent the damned offer to Oranica. One that changed his life because Oranica had agreed to it!

Now here Siden was, his life tossed about as if a piece of meat to starving dogs. Of course, he was angry, who wouldn’t be?

Now he stood more like stone, than flesh, staring out at the desolation he called home.

The sunlight in the distance even struggled to break the stranglehold the boiling clouds had on it as bolts of lightning were tossed about like a game reluctantly played. It might have been beautiful but it only reminded him of the suffering of his people and their imminent destruction.

The wind howled through the window panes, bringing the stench of rot with it. A fat raindrop hit the window and to some it might have seemed harmless, but to Ravenside, it meant ruined crops and the slowest form of torture and death imaginable for any caught in it.

Siden glared at the world before him defiantly. There was no mercy to be found and hadn’t been for two hellish years.

Furious, he struck the unyielding stone with a large hand. The physical pain was nothing compared to the ache in his chest.

It seemed like a different life, one where he’d laughed and enjoyed his fill of food and hot day’s spent swimming in the clear lakes.

He watched as a scrawny youth ran across the yard below in a panic searching for shelter from the acid-like rain. No one should have to live this way, he thought with a sneer glancing away. Skeletal-like trees set against the turbulent skies glared back at him and stirred memories Siden worked hard to suppress. The present faded as did the sound of arguing men, replaced by the sweet sound of his mother’s laughter.

He was a boy again being chased through gardens being swept up in a warm embrace and squealing in delight. He felt the warmth of her hand in his as they wandered the paths, inspecting plants bursting with life, looking at every bug, and talking endlessly of things that came to mind. The happiness was overshadowed by dark heavy grief as he stood beside a gaping hole, the ground icy, his hands cold, his mournful wail filling his ears as the pain and loss clawed its way up his dry throat. He watched his mother’s body being lowered into a pit of endless darkness and the child of then was inconsolable, the man of the present however gave himself a mental shake and a pained gasp as the memories released their hold.

There was no time for such distractions when his people were starving.

Bowing his head, he rested his brow on the cool stone and cursed the Fates that would allow such misery and pain to continue.

Pushing away from the wall he shook his head. If’s and should-haves made no difference. Hadn’t the Fates proven it over the past two years by sitting by and watching all this play out? If they’d he wouldn’t have lost so much and his people wouldn’t be suffering now.

With a derisive snort, focused on the fact that the war had to end or Landreann would be destroyed. Two years of dealing with the unholy demons inhabiting the old castle was enough. At first, the blame had been put on Earien, but they quickly realized such a feat was impossible for them. There was no way for them to keep such forces a secret without someone noticing. True, they’d been threatening war for as long as Siden could remember, but everyone knew they couldn’t do anything but threaten. Derbil wasn’t possible, even if it wasn’t under Ravenside’s rule. There weren’t enough men to even form a small army, let alone the one the Raden’s had been battling the past two years. One Kingdom remained… Oranica. After hours of debate, it was concluded it couldn’t be them. They’d never shown any hostilities or even hinted at war. The question of who and where they’d come from had come slowly. Information was gathered and soon it was discovered that Landreann was being invaded by forces from a land far from their shores. A land that bred grotesque monsters with fangs and armor proving to be nearly impenetrable called Tycorions. The unholy creations polluted waterways and destroyed anything in their paths. They hunted for sport, taking pleasure in torture and leaving the stench of decay in their wake.

Siden had been a reckless boy bent on self-destruction who’d cared nothing about who got hurt or caught up in his vendetta against life and the Fates that he’d blamed for taking his mother and then the woman he’d loved.

A twinge of guilt tugged at his conscience. His childish actions were largely responsible for the added lines around his Father’s brow and the shadows beneath his blue eyes. As Ravenside’s king, he was required to give up things and he had, including setting aside his sorrow and pain of losing his wife. Siden however, had been allowed to mourn and act out as he, both his mother’s loss and then Canzil’s his Father had given up much for the welfare of his people, including setting aside his own pain and sorrow when he’d lost the woman he’d loved.

Turning his back to the council, Siden stared aimlessly out the window. Could he do the same now? Was he strong enough to set aside his own desires for the future, to end a war?

Again, memories stirred and the years tumbled away

Frustrated, he burst into the war room startling the men gathered around the table. All eyes turned to look at him in surprise. Stomping through the room, Siden placed his fisted hands upon the scattered papers and maps on the table and growled, “I won’t have it! You are the King and my Father, but you can’t deny me the choice of going with my own men to battle!”

The color leached from the King’s face before a flush of anger reddened his cheeks and his gaze narrowed. “True, I am King and I can, and will do as I see fit!” He blustered emphatically.

Siden hissed. “You can’t always use the King card on me, Father! These are my men and I will go with them if I choose to!” It was an all-out challenge and they knew it.

His Father shot to his feet, the chair crashing to the floor behind him. “You’ll not defy me in this!” He bellowed.

Siden straightened, crossed his arms, and with a cold chuckle snarled, “How do you intend to stop me? Toss me in the stocks… better yet…throw me in the dungeon under lock and key?!” He regretted the words instantly. It was unfair and callous to remind his Father of Siden’s time spent in a dungeon at the hands of a ruthless man bent on destruction and power. Still, knowing he couldn’t back down, Siden sucked in a calming breath and took an emotional step back. He was angry, but that wasn’t a reason to hurt his Father further with reminders of the past and things neither one could change. “I can’t in good conscience remain here,” Siden said in a soft undertone. “I will not cower here while men I’ve trained with, leave to fight in this battle. Take it whatever way you’d like, but I stand firm. I am going.”

His Father simply stared at Siden as if he’d grown two heads.

The silence began to grate on Siden’s already stretched nerves. Leaning in, Siden demanded stiffly. “Tell me this then…” He glared at each man in turn before continuing, “If I remain, what of the men? What will they think of their Prince hiding behind these walls while they fight for me…”? He shook his head, “No! For us!” He pushed away from the table with a burst of anger. “What will you tell their families when they look to their Prince who has remained safe while their loved ones suffer and die?”

No answer came.

“I’m no coward hiding behind walls or women’s skirts!” Siden roared. “I’m leaving with my men when they march!”

Karden blinked, his words hardly more than a whisper. “Think about what you’re saying, son.” He leaned forward; his gaze fixed on his sons’ face.

“No one thinks you a coward. You’re Ravenside’s next king. The only line of succession. What would it mean for our kingdom and her people, if… Fates forbid, you were killed in one of these battles? Have you considered that?” He rounded the table, stopping before Siden. Their gazes met in a silent battle of wills. “This is no game. There is no room for error. You are right, those men might not return. Think about that Siden. Think of what that would mean to our people should you be among the dead.”

Siden stiffened and stepped back. “You think I haven’t thought about that? Do I look like a child playing some imaginary game of war?” He roared. “Is it not clear, I know this is no game!” He glared back at his Father, accusations, and anger glinting in his eyes. “Where have you been Father as I’ve sat in the medic rooms, as I’ve listened to the dying scream in pain, heard their loved ones sobbing over the dead and dying…Where have you been?!”

His Father said nothing but held Siden’s hot gaze. “Don’t tell me I don’t know what this war is doing to our people. I’ve seen it up close.” The anger Siden felt washed away leaving him tired and drained but determined. “I need to do this. Can’t you understand that?” It was a softly spoken declaration.

After a moment of silence Karden suddenly struck out with his fist. The cups on the table toppled and...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 28.1.2022
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Fantasy / Science Fiction ► Fantasy
• ISBN-10: 1-6678-1508-3 / 1667815083
• ISBN-13: 978-1-6678-1508-4 / 9781667815084