Possessing the Grimstone - By John Grover Page 0,79
a sound caught his slender, pointed ears, a keen sense of hearing in all of his people. It came from behind him.
Footsteps behind…slow, dragging, shuffling. Something was on the steps. He looked back, and saw a form round the corner, chain armor jingled as steel scraped against stone.
He was no longer alone. Guardians? Rubbish…the dead could not harm him. Yet the only things back that way were the tombs.
The form grew closer. Braenyn drew his sword.
Six months earlier
He woke in the arms of his lover, Tarrow, the shape shifter from the hillside. It had been weeks since they were able to spend time together, Tarrow’s nomadic people having moved again.
Braenyn gave Tarrow one last kiss before rising from the animal skins and pine branches. He took a drink of water from the bowl in the corner of the tent and began dressing.
“You’re up early,” Tarrow whispered, lifting himself onto his elbows. “The light hasn’t even breached the mountains yet.”
Braenyn looked up, noticing the disappointment in Tarrow’s eyes. “I need to train if I’m going to start my quest when the moon grows full. That’s in just a few days. You can come watch me if you want.”
“Swordplay and magic don’t really thrill me. I like a more hands-on activity.”
“Oh, I know,” Braenyn said with a sly smile.
“Tell me again about this scepter.”
Braenyn sat on the drum he and Tarrow used many times to sing songs about their relationship, about their lives, and about their Gods, as different as those Gods were, and began his tale again. He knew how much Tarrow loved hearing him tell his stories.
“The fabled scepter is no fable, my love. It is made of pure gold and encrusted with priceless gemstones. It is more valuable then any treasure this side of the Coral mountains. With its value you could buy a kingdom. And legend tells that it grants wishes…whether it is true or not remains to be seen as no one has ever been able to liberate it. Forget the other quests I have braved. Emerald and sapphire baubles, rings of power, gauntlets of platinum, ruby crowns, gold nuggets, silver ore…they mean noting compared to the scepter. No adventurer has even come close to obtaining it.
“And how did you learn of its existence?”
“It was a night of chance and luck.” Braenyn lifted his right arm in grand gesture, reveling in his tales, captivating the admiration of Tarrow from the very beginning, having met him after his very first quest. “I was at a tavern in the human town of Dar. Ironically a bard was singing a boon I had never heard before—all about a fabled scepter. A drunk in the corner mumbled that he knew it existed, that his map told the way. He was ignored by everyone…except me.”
“As he stumbled out that night, I followed him, blending into the shadows and using my stealth skills to find his sleeping quarters in a hollowed out tree and there, relieved him of his possessions. In a smelly, filth-ridden sack I found it—the map to the scepter, a description in some sort of mixture human and Elven writing, a warning and spell. It clearly showed the way, a perilous way indeed but where there’s a will…
Tarrow rose to his feet, covering his nakedness from the cold and walked to his lover. Their lips met. Tarrow sighed. “Perhaps too perilous?”
“Nonsense.”
“This is not just any quest Braenyn. The scepter rests among the dead. That is not to be taken lightly.”
“And what harm can the dead do to me?”
“My naïve love. You wouldn’t say that if you had done battle with a Wraith Lord as I had. I nearly escaped with my life.”
“I fear nothing dead…what is alive is what we must fear. Think of it, Tarrow. All of our dreams, anything we want. No longer living like paupers. No longer moving every time your people are attacked or persecuted as monsters. We can have a kingdom of our own. With an army and servants. Think of it.”
Tarrow paused a long moment, his gaze searching the tent, and then tracing every line in his elf’s adorable face. “Well then let me go with you. I can help keep you safe. My strength in battle is invaluable. As when I took the form of a Golem to chase off the brigands who jumped us last month.”
“No I must do this alone. It is a question of honor. Besides, I need someone to watch over our possessions and keep the home fires burning. I always look forward to returning to you when my quests are done. You are more rewarding then any gold or jewel I have won.”
They embraced.
“Now I’m off to train.” Braenyn took up his sword and left the tent.
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Author Bio
John Grover is a fiction author residing in Massachusetts. He completed a creative writing course at Boston’s Fisher College and is a member of the New England Horror Writers Association. Some of his more recent credits include stories in The Silver Blade, Aurora Wolf, The Willows, Rouge Worlds, Alternate Realities and more.
He is the author the new fantasy series Song of the Ancestors, Web of the Spider Queen and The Human Condition are out now. This is a novella series planned to have 4 volumes in all—a kindle exclusive. His next fantasy series the Books of Braenyn has now gone live as well featuring the adventures of a rogue elf thief and his shape-shifting lover. Join the adventures with the first two stories available for Kindle and Nook.
John also writes in the horror and sci-fi genres. All of his currents works can be found on his website. Please visit his site www.shadowtales.com or his facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/johngroverdarkfictionauthor) for more information.
Bibliography
Song of the Ancestors Series
Web of the Spider Queen
The Human Condition
Ballad of the Fallen-Coming Soon
The Ashes of Orum-Coming Soon
The Books of Braenyn
The Scepter of Namiss
The Fallen Church of Ashburn
Family Bonds-Coming Soon
Tarrow’s Tale-Coming Soon
Duel on Mt Vapor-Coming Soon
Friend or Foe in a Broken Land-Coming Soon
The Urn of Orgo-Coming Soon
A Dish Served Cold –Coming Soon
Table of Contents
Other Fantasy Titles by John Grover
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Glossary of Terms and Pronounciations
Bonus Material
Author Bio
Bibliography
Table of Contents
Other Fantasy Titles by John Grover
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Glossary of Terms and Pronounciations
Bonus Material
Author Bio
Bibliography
Table of Contents
Other Fantasy Titles by John Grover
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Glossary of Terms and Pronounciations
Bonus Material
Author Bio
Bibliography