The Divine Unleashed (Book 3) Read online

  The Divine Unleashed

  By

  Allen J Johnston

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2013, Allen J Johnston. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means without the prior written permission of the publisher.

  Cover art by: Amber Johnston

  Editor: Ken Poff

  Editor: Holly Schaffer

  Acknowledgment

  I am blessed to have the privilege of calling Mike Persons my friend. He is one of the good people that walk amongst us. He has been with me on this journey for many years and I am certain he will be there for quite some time to come. I cannot express my thanks enough. I would also like to say thanks to Branden, my first son, Cole, my second and Blake, my third for making life so fun. And what author would even be an author without his amazing readers. Thanks to all you who hold this book in your hands and lose yourself in my world.

  *CH1*

  Kade closes his eyes and his heart starts to pound as his memory shows him the massive hand of the giant Alluvium reaching out for them as they race off the edge of the cliff. He takes a sharp inhalation as his eyes shoot open just as the hand was closing on him. It was so close it could have gone either way, but they were safe…for now.

  He glances over his shoulder in the direction of the cliff and takes a deep breath, attempting to settle his nerves and slow his racing heart. His muscles ached furiously from use. Even with his extra strength, it was a challenge to stay on the dragon as it dodged and weaved in and out of the Alluvium as they filled the fields. He knew he was going to be sore all over when they finally decided to land but better this than lying dead in the field.

  “We need to go to the cave you spoke of,” Doren said, startling Kade out of his own thoughts.

  “Rayden, can you get us back to the spiders?” Kade asked. The dragon responded in the affirmative through the mental link. “Then take us there,” the apprentice said out loud. The dragon banked gently and headed toward their next destination. The wind whistled by calmly. It was a welcome change as they glided smoothly on the back of Rayden while catching wind currents.

  Kade was at war with himself. One part of him desperately wanted to bring Morg to justice while the second part wanted nothing more than to exact revenge. He was not sure which motivation was more dominant, and he was starting to care less and less about what that meant. He knew that in the end, he wanted the man to suffer horribly. Kade wanted to crush the life out of him just as the evil Chosen had tried to do to him when they were in Doren’s study. He wanted to see the fear in the man’s eyes as his time on this world came to a painful end. He did not care if it was wrong or right, he wanted it.

  “Kade?” Darcienna asked, concern thick in her voice as she felt the muscles in his shoulders and arms bunching and relaxing over and over.

  The Apprentice Chosen took a deep breath and let it out. He unclenched his fists and relaxed the muscles along his jaw. He was not aware how tense he had been until the sweet sound of Darcienna’s voice broke through to bring him back from his own torment. He hated feeling this way but something in him was changing. He wanted to call on every ounce of Divine Power he could muster and crush that evil man. Right or wrong did not matter.

  “Kade?” Darcienna asked again, feeling him tensing all over, once more.

  The Apprentice Chosen felt as if he wanted to roll his head back and scream at the sky. He hated that he felt like this but he could not stop seeing Darcienna hanging in the air. He could almost see her dying as he recalled the way the Divine Lightning ricocheted off Morg’s shield. How he recognized that Darcienna hung in the air between himself and Morg was beyond his understanding. He felt a momentary flush run through him as the realization that that situation could have easily ended with her dying because of his rage. Again, he unclenched his fist, took a deep breath and let it out while forcing his muscles to relax. Darcienna reached around him and squeezed, attempting to bring him some comfort. Kade closed his eyes and let himself melt into those loving arms as he forced himself to calm his breathing. He opened his eyes and surveyed the ground as they flowed effortlessly along. Kade could hear the concern in her voice but he did not respond.

  The more he thought on their situation, the more he began to dread what was in their future. As much as he wanted to whisk her away to safety, he was certain his path to safety was first going to lead him directly into extreme danger. Kade glanced back at the overweight man riding uncomfortably behind the wing and knew that this Master Chosen was only going to be child’s play for Morg. He wished desperately that Zayle was with them. He would know what to do.

  Kade turned back around and shook his head as his thoughts continued on. Darcienna rubbed his arm to help sooth him. It did help calm him… slightly…but his mind could not help recalling that evil trick that almost ended with Darcienna dead at his hand. He clenched his jaw in anger and felt as if he wanted to scream again but took another deep breath and let it out.

  “Kade,” Darcienna said in a smooth, even tone, “when you were growing up, what did you like to do for fun?”

  “For fun?” Kade asked as he turned to look at her, shocked that she would ask this out of nowhere. He shook his head and turned back around as he thought back on his childhood. After several moments of consideration, he could not help but to chuckle as one memory came to mind.

  “Well, I recall finding this spider that had to be as big as my hand. It was dead so I took it into the house and decided to have some fun with it,” Kade said as he let out a chuckle. He opened his mouth to continue and let out another laugh as the memory sharpened in his mind. Darcienna smiled to herself as she listened eagerly. “I tied a black thread to it and put it across the room where my mother sat in her favorite chair. Then, I slowly pulled it across the room.” Kade let out another chuckle.

  “That is mean,” Darcienna said but she smirked and did her best to keep from laughing. “So, what did your mother do?” she asked, genuinely being drawn into the story.

  “She screamed,” Kade said as he chuckled at the memory once more. “Father jumped up from his chair and tried to swat it with something, but of course, that only caused it to jump, which caused him to scream. Seeing my dad scream was almost better than seeing my mother’s reaction,” Kade said as he turned to look Darcienna in the eye. She could not help but to give a little chuckle as she covered her mouth in an attempt to stifle her laugh. How could she chastise him if she laughed at the story? Kade grinned childishly as he smiled at her attempt to hide her mirth. Darcienna dropped her hand and grinned while shaking her head in a way that said, “There is something wrong with you,” but the smile never left her eyes. Kade could not help but to give her a laugh at that. It reminded him of the times he and Darcienna played their games. He recalled the lake and grinned even more.

  Darcienna smiled to herself as she felt the tension in his muscles slowly melt away. Yes, he needed her more than he realized, more than he would ever know. He was a man. How could he ever know what was best for himself?

  Kade turned around as his mind pictured the first time he looked into those beautiful, blue eyes. He took a deep breath right then just as he had done the first time he saw her. He smiled at the memory and flitted to the next memory of her holding his clothes playfully at the edge of the hot spring. Next, he visualized her lying next to him in their make-shift bed in the spider’s home. He closed his eyes as he recalled how
sweet and innocent she looked. He turned around to look at her again to compare the memory of her sleeping self with her waking self. Kade did not realize that his mood had shifted dramatically. The world did not seem that ugly a place anymore.

  “What?” she asked suspiciously as she saw his mind working.

  “I was just thinking,” Kade said as he faced forward once more. “Just recalling something,” was all he would say. Darcienna narrowed her eyes as she studied the back of his head, suspicious and curious all at the same time. Kade let it go at that and truly felt that the world could be a wonderful place. With Darcienna’s arms wrapped around his waist, how could it not be? He let his left hand settle on her arm as he gripped Rayden’s ridges with his other.

  Kade recalled the momentary fall off the cliff and his hands instinctually gripped a little tighter. He glanced back, checking to see if he could still see the cliff, but it was far behind. Kade felt the muscles in his back and shoulder unwind as he leaned back into Darcienna’s embrace just a little more.

  All the riders fell into their own thoughts. Each one appreciated the opportunity to relax and recover. Kade felt his heart slowly return to normal. He looked down at the ground and appreciated the peacefulness of it. The only sounds he heard were that of Rayden’s occasional grunt as he pumped his wings and the wind as it whistled by. Kade closed his eyes and breathed deep for several long moments as his mind continued to slow. Fatigue started to weigh on him as he felt his body relax more and more. Darcienna leaned forward and whispered into his ear. He quickly spun and locked accusing eyes with Doren. Kade reached back and untied the books from the dragon’s wings. Without an ounce of respect an apprentice would show a master, he roughly yanked the sack from Doren’s grasp. Master Chosen or not, this was one line that was not to be crossed. Doren shrugged easily and looked away. It was what they did. They coveted knowledge any way they could.

  Kade did not want to think what would have happened if Doren had actually slipped his hand into the sack and caused one of the books to open slightly. He shivered as he thought about the demon on the cover in the circle. Would it stop with Doren or would it have continued until we were all dead? Kade wondered. His grip on the sack tightened at the thought. One thing was certain; he never wanted to find out.

  Kade tied the rope around his waist and let the sack hang off his side. It was uncomfortable and caused him to shift more to the other side to compensate for the weight, but it was better than leaving it for Doren to rifle through. Kade turned his attention to his winged friend as the dragon carried them away to safety.

  “You did well, Rayden. You saved us,” Kade said as he patted the dragon affectionately on the shoulder, shoving the thought of the books right out of his head. Kade sensed the dragon’s weary response through the link. Rayden was exhausted, but he still basked in the praise. For a moment, Kade wondered if the dragon could become so tired that his wings would just fold up, but then in the next instant, he was certain that the dragon would know to land. It’s not every day that a dragon falls from the sky. For that matter,” Kade pondered as he chuckled,” it’s not any day that a dragon falls from the sky, he thought to himself in amusement.

  Kade closed his eyes, and the image of Zayle floated before him. He shuddered as he thought about the cave. He almost flinched, surprised that this is where his mind was going. Taking a deep breath, he steeled himself for what was to come. He kept his eyes closed as he relaxed, leaning back into Darcienna’s embrace once more. Peace enveloped him in those arms and he welcomed it eagerly. The image of Zayle faded to be replaced by Darcienna. A slight smile worked at the edges of his mouth as his mind imagined being with her in other ways. He sank into those visions and let them take him away. It was not long before he was breathing deeply. The only thing keeping him from plummeting to his death was the woman behind him, who would be there for him, even when he did not realize it.

  Kade jerked awake as he felt himself slipping off the dragon. Every muscle went rock hard as he gasped and felt a hot flash race through is body at the thought of almost falling to his death. He looked down and saw patches of ground slide by between the clouds. His stomach lurched at the thought of that long fall. He shook his head to wake himself.

  “You okay?” Darcienna asked, still gripping him tightly.

  “Just finding it difficult to stay awake,” Kade said as he rubbed his eyes. Darcienna’s musical voice drifted to him in the form of her sweet laugh. “What?” he asked as he looked over his shoulder at her.

  “You have been asleep for quite some time,” Darcienna said with a smile. Kade shivered as he looked down once more. It was a long fall. His stomach clenched at the thought. He reached down and put his hand on her arm, certain she was the only reason he had not already hit the ground. The security of that embrace was calming.

  “Thanks,” Kade said as he squeezed her arm.

  “Someone has to keep you safe,” Darcienna teased. Kade laughed, but one glance down kept the laugh short.

  He tilted his head to the side and then shielded his eyes with his hand to block out the sun. He peered hard ahead and then nodded. He was thinking of the bed in the spider’s tree and felt himself craving more sleep. His back was cramping and his bottom was so sore he was sure he had bruises from his waist to his knees.

  “Kade, we need to find a place to rest and find nourishment,” Doren said.

  “I’m sure we are close,” Kade called back. He could hear the discomfort in the master’s voice, also. Yes, they were going to have to find a place to stop.

  Just as Kade was considering where he wanted to land, the dragon started a gradual descent. Kade could see the mountain rising well above the clouds as they closed in on it and smiled to himself in relief. He peered hard at the ground, trying to make out the tunnel. Still too far away, he sat back and scanned the area for danger. Nothing moved. The closer he got to the ground, the more he tensed, dreading what he knew he must do.

  Maybe I can show Doren to the arch and be done with all this, Kade thought, trying to convince himself that his involvement was going to be minimal. He pressed his lips tightly together as the feeling in his gut said otherwise. Well, until he learned otherwise, he was going to plan for a short stay and then return to his parents’ place for some much deserved rest.

  The dragon was soon gliding toward the ground, and Kade could feel waves of exhaustion coming off his winged friend. For a moment, he was afraid the dragon might just hit the ground and crash to a stop…if he was able to make it that far. Darcienna stretched, as the ground came up at them. The dragon leaned back and flapped hard several times as it touched down, trying to be gentle. Its wings fell to the ground and it collapsed, breathing heavily. Doren lurched sideways and barely hung onto the dragon’s wing-joints. Kade and Darcienna surged forward as their momentum almost pitched them over the dragon’s head. Kade pushed back and both he and the beautiful, blue-eyed rider righted themselves.

  Kade tried to swing his leg over the dragon’s neck, but his muscles protested painfully. He gritted his teeth, and on the next attempt, swung his leg hard. He flipped over onto his stomach and slid down. He landed, and after almost falling, stumbled around while pounding on his legs to get the circulation back in them. Doren gracefully worked his way down the tail of the dragon and stopped, surveying the area. Kade saw what looked like suspicion in the master’s eye, but after glancing around himself, he dismissed any concerns. Darcienna leaned forward and swung her leg behind herself, then turned and slid down into Kade’s waiting arms. She arched her back, stretching and rubbed her back side.

  Darcienna stopped and slowly turned while scanning the area. Kade watched her, and as she completed the circle, coming around to face him, her eyes were glowing softly. He tried to muster the energy to care and almost failed. He took a deep breath and let it out, feeling his mind become a little more alert. He could swear that her eyes were permanently glowing anymore. With a sigh, he warned the dragon of the possibility of danger. The dragon dr
ew in its wings, scraping them along the ground instead of curling them in and wearily lumbered to its feet. It sniffed the air several times. Kade could feel confusion through the link. It definitely smelled something, but it was a familiar scent that was not associated with danger.

  Kade walked around the dragon, watching the cave closely. Nothing moved. He turned and scanned the trees carefully. Something about them was not quite right. Kade squinted and tried to focus, but the sun was making it hard to see.

  “Kade,” Darcienna said slowly. “It’s too quiet, and something is definitely wrong.”

  It was as if Darcienna’s words caused the area to explode in a frenzy of activity. Spiders dropped from the trees and charged out from everywhere. There were hundreds. They poured out of the cave in droves. Kade spun through the moves for the Fire Calling and had it held high, ready to let fly when it occurred to him that it was spiders he was seeing. They rushed him and he welcomed them as the fire evaporated.

  “Kade,” Darcienna said, but he did not look at her as the spiders came at them. Had he spared her so much as a glance, he would have seen that her eyes were glowing and getting brighter by the moment.

  “I see,” Kade said as he stepped up to greet his allies.

  “Kade?” Doren asked in a firm, critical voice.

  “They are our friends,” Kade said as the spiders closed in on them.

  “Kade!” Darcienna yelled as the first of the spiders reached them, her hands raised in indecision. Her eyes flared brightly.

  Kade’s belief that he was being greeted by allies quickly turned into shock and disbelief as he was violently driven to the ground. He struggled to catch his breath, the wind being knocked out of him. The dragon leapt to its feet and roared in confusion. It backed up a step as it readied itself to launch into the attackers that were holding Kade pinned to the ground. Doren had a sparking energy dancing between his fingers and was on the verge of attacking.