Taber

  Taber

  By K. Fisher

  Tales of Desin, book 2

  First printing October 2019

  Copyright © K. Fisher All rights reserved.

  10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

  K. Fisher

  Formatting & cover art done by: jodieszarmach.com

  Brushes for title page and page breaks: https://www.deviantart.com/gimpcraft

  DISCLAIMER

  The book as well as the characters in this book are entirely fictional. Any resemblance to actual persons living or dead is entirely coincidental.

  License

  All rights reserved. This ebook or parts thereof may not be reproduced in any form, stored in any retrieval system, or transmitted in any form by any means—electronic, mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise—without prior written permission of the publisher, except as provided by United States of America copyright law.

  Table of Contents

  Dedication

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  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

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Chapter Twenty-Eight

  About the Author

  Other Books

  Elladora – Sneak peek!

  Dedication

  Grandma.

  May you dance in the Forests of Nevina.

  I’ll see you again.

  I

  Prologue

  Oftentimes, I would dream of the light and happier things.

  I dreamed of my mother’s most beautiful face as she smiled down at me from the world above. Sometimes, I even dreamed of a future where my looks and I blossomed into something to admire, as my mother’s had.

  I would see myself through the same green eyes; my short black hair would have grown to the low of my back, luscious and something to envy.

  “Evie,” they would say to me. “Look at what beauty has graced you, sweet Eve.”

  I would be old enough then to know of the elders’ secrets and to join in at dinner when my family conversed of things happening in the lands of Desin. I would have input when they gossiped about others and praise their own good fortune; old enough to know how and why my mother died, and the dangers of the world we now faced.

  Unfortunately, I always wake from these dreams that brought me happiness and found myself in the same place that I had been before, in my home near the Yurel Oceans.

  I stretch to the early darkness and hop from my bed, feeling my nightdress fall to my ankles the moment my feet touch the wooden floorboards. It is always a funny feeling to me and one of the reasons I always prefer pants, to my family’s dismay.

  My father never approves as I am supposed to be a lady, and little ladies that wear pants are frowned upon, but I hardly find people frowning at me. I make it a point to inform him that I am but ten years old, I can still hide behind pants and those in the town will believe I am a boy. If my mother were still alive she would have hugged me and proclaimed that I was too soft of face to ever be considered a boy. She would have silently disapproved of me acting in such ways, but would have allowed the pants nonetheless.

  However, my mother is no longer alive and no one is there to take my side in my father’s estate. Not my grandparents who live with us, nor my aunt or uncle, not even my four cousins, to whom I have tried to grow close. I am the youngest in the home, but before me comes Tobias who is twelve years old and is the only one not too old to play my games with me. This small amount of amusement I gain in our friendship will soon come to an end, however.

  My aunt was to leave with her children and travel across the kingdom to the village of Glade, she reported to us a night previously. I am too young to be told why she is doing such a dreadful thing, but I am most certain that her husband will not be coming with her as he has yet to pack any bags.

  I wonder if he will miss his family? I doubt, because of the actions we watched transpire, that his family would miss him much in return.

  I leave my room in the dark morning and make my descent down the vast staircase towards the front rooms. The house is very warm, leaving my skin slick and tingling as though I sat near a roaring fire; the weather was becoming stifling. Voices can be heard from down in the kitchen and I am quick to hurry in that direction; my bare feet making soft patters as I skip into the kitchen.

  “Smells delicious!” I say, sniffing the air loudly. “What are you making this morning?”

  Petis, the cook I have grown up with and adored more than any others in the home, peers up from his position above a large cooking pot. His small, skinny frame looks positively dwarfed by the pot, forcing him to disappear almost entirely.

  “Ahh, Eve, up early again I see. Your father will not be happy if he sees you up hours before breakfast!”

  “I’m not sitting in my room all morning and I’m bored.”

  Petis chuckles lightly. “We’re making some bacon and biscuits this morning. Your cousin Matthew turns seventeen years this day, had you forgotten, Eve?”

  Of course I had not forgotten, he had spoken of nothing else for weeks.

  “I’m very hungry. Might I take some of the biscuits with me?” I inquire, peering over at the warm food being prepared nearby on the counter.

  Petis sighs, a smile about his gentle features as he hands over two warm biscuits into my outstretched hands. They burn for a moment, but I ignore it, and start shoving one into my mouth, the flakes falling apart in a buttery mess of flavor, the subtle notes of garlic and onion mixed into the fluffy biscuit. I mumble a thank you between the bites of food as I hurry from the kitchen and out of my home.

  I always feel so small when I leave the confines of my father’s house and enter the world outside. With the massive Yurel Oceans before me, the dark forests of Nevina to my left, and my hometown to my right, I could go anywhere and find adventure. I could sail to the mountains or perhaps travel to the castle and meet the new Queen that would take care of us all.

  I am but a broken bird that has not been able to use her wings, too young to be allowed any true freedom aside from my yard wanderings. However, there is one joy I can partake in without leaving my father’s lands, and that was the watching of the wolves. Early in the morning is when I always see her, the large amber wolf I have come to adore, her muscles rippling as she moves from the forest to lay in the warm sand by the ocean’s edge, even sometimes to bathe in its warmth. She is positively gorgeous and far more dangerous than I could ever comprehend. Larger than I am standing, she is truly a marvel.

  Not once has she seemed scared or threatened by my ever-lingering presence. She is a noble beast, and I will never harm her or do anything to break her trust in me.

  A few months ago she had gone missing, and I could have sworn my heart had been broken. But then, several weeks ago she had appeared once more with three wolf pups. They were bitty and fluffy; two a dark amber like their lovely mother, the other was black and far smaller than the rest. They would play with each other by the water many mornings, pouncing and leaping, swatting at flies as they passed.

  I found myself staying up at night wishing I was
one of them… That these wolves were my family.

  I can’t help but smile this morning as the she-wolf comes from the dark trees, sniffing the air, ears perked. Her attention was drawn to me for several minutes before she moves forward, the pups following her lead; the black one in back, pawing at the legs of his siblings before him as they bit back in an attempt to stop him.

  I used to believe she was careful to protect her own life when she came from the dark forest, now I am certain that she is careful only for her children. I do not know how this is so hard for me to accept.

  I found myself wanting one of the babies for my own, but no one would ever let such a wild animal into my father’s home. Besides, I could never live with the guilt of taking one of the pups from their mother and breaking the beautiful spell of their morning adventures together.

  Ripped from my daydreaming, I stand quickly when I hear the loud voice of my father inside the house. The amber wolf’s ears perk and she whips towards the trees, her pups following close behind her.

  The tone of my father’s voice is hardly cheerful and I fear the punishment of not responding quickly. Surely, he went to my room to wake me and noticed my absence in bed. He stands at the dinner table as I enter the house, his grey, cold eyes watching me carefully. He is already dressed in his business attire, the sleeves of his brown suit folded upward towards his elbows. Dark hairs cascade up his arms on either side, making him appear like a large, fearsome Dwarf from the High Mountains; beings I had seen only a few times during our few visits into town. He is burly and strong, locked away from any emotion as he cares for his family like a business.

  “What were you doing up so early again, Eve?” he asks slowly.

  “I could not sleep in, just like every morning.”

  “There’s no need for you to be wandering around without someone watching you. Get into the kitchen, everyone is coming down for breakfast. Go!” The last words are a harsh yell that send me scurrying. “When breakfast has ended you need to change those clothes as well.”

  Everyone is still wearing their night attire when I enter the dining room. Plates of bacon and biscuits, as well as fried potatoes are placed out for us to dish into in the center of the table. Across from my seat, Tobias is rubbing his eyes, looking at me.

  “How do you always get up so early?”

  Without an answer, I take a seat at the table next to my family, focusing on the plates of food before me as the others start to pile in. Matthew, Lisa, and Nickoli came next, their voices carrying through the room and echoing about the house. Matthew is beaming and surely excited for the attention he will get for his birthday. My grandparents are already seated and looking as prideful as ever as they whisper softly to each other under their breath. My aunt is staring at the bacon as though it is the essence of evil; oh how she despises the idea of eating animals, but still it is served to her with expectation. Her husband never leaves his room, even for his son’s birthday I doubt he will make an appearance this morning for the festivities.

  I put my hands in my lap, thumbs playing with each other as I look over the family before me, my father finally entering and taking a seat at the head of the table before us all.

  The breakfast is quiet and quick just as it is every morning, the food is always wonderful even when the company is not. The end of our breakfast concludes with presents, which makes Matthew’s smile even more radiant as he tears into brightly colored bags and reveals trinkets and toys. I watch intently as he receives a new riding bridle for his horse, a few pairs of breeches, and a rather handsome lime green shirt along with the toys.

  When he hovers over the last carefully-wrapped present, I know what he is going to receive. He had imprinted his dire wish to have a shotgun upon all of us after practicing every morning with my father, so it is no surprise when he lifts the gun from the confines of the box and holds it out in front of his body. The look on his face terrifies me. It is not one of joy or mirth, but rather a promise of mischief that will follow with his new toy. We do not approve of magic this side of the Nevina Forests and prefer weapons of our own creation, something I cannot seem to comprehend. Especially with the viciously good shot my cousin possessed after practicing so regularly.

  I fear not the gun, nor the violence it can cause, but the boy who held it.

  The rest of the afternoon goes on quickly; my family going about their business as my cousins accompany Matthew to play with his new toys. I busy myself with drawing just inside the home, looking out as they run and play along the Yurel coastline- a long coast that stretches to the backsides of the High Mountains, endless and filled with an assortment of creatures we could only dream to ever see.

  Suddenly, a scream from outside demands my attention and I stand from my position at the window, searching for the cause.

  Lisa is running from the water as fast as her legs can carry her, falling to the ground when she can’t run as quickly as she wished on the sinking sand. My heart sank as I saw the black wolf pup run towards its mother at the forest’s edge and away from my cousin. The pup must have been lying beside the water under the watchful eye of its mother when Lisa had startled it.

  I heard Nickoli’s voice next, loud and strong.

  “Was that a damned wolf? Have we no security in our own backyard? Moving targets. Call Matthew! It looks like the little one’s a bit slow; we can still get them if he hurries!”

  I almost fall as I leap towards the door outside, my voice breaking across the yard as I scramble to get their attention before anything terrible happens.

  “Stop! Stop, Matthew, stop!”

  My foot catches on the last step of our porch and I fall to the ground, my hands splayed out in front of me, collecting dirt and small bits of rock with the impact. Ahead of me, I see Matthew beside the house aiming his gun towards the forests. I hear the shot ring out and see his body jerk with the power of the gun going off as I scramble towards the wolves, but know I am too late as a yip fills the air.

  Instead of racing to the different mounds of fur on the ground before my cousin, I turn to run towards Matthew, launching myself at him as hard as I can muster, my fists searching for any bit of body they can make contact with. Lisa yanks at my hair and tears me from her brother a mere few moments later but I know I had dealt some hard hits before she did.

  “Devil!” she hisses, holding me away from Matthew and the gun that had surely killed Iris.

  “I’ll take it from here.”

  I do not change my composure as my father’s deep voice breaks through our yelling and he yanked me inside with a rough hand, feeling my arm pop with the sheer strength of his grasp, “Bed, now, Eve!” he spits, giving me a push towards the stairs.

  I run to my bedroom, away from them all, and fall to my knees the moment my door closes behind me and I am left alone, my body is racked with emotion as I mourn the dead wolf that I had come to love and wondered what would happen to her small pups. Even in sadness, my exhausted body soon drifted into slumber, finding solace in the idea of sleeping away the memories of Matthew shooting and the perfection of his aim.

  I dream while I sleep, dream of the one I have just lost. The wolf mother was lying upon the ground before me in my dream, amber fur motionless in the darkness as I leaned over her body on the ground. Loud, wordless cries of anguish came from my throat as she continued to stay still and refused to respond to my attempts to wake her. Within moments, my cries turned to howls, howls that were nothing but animalistic in nature.

  My fingertips were glowing and beneath my hands the wolf moved slowly. At first it was merely a shudder that transformed into the subtle lifting of her chest in breath. Soon her head lifted and a growl erupted from her lips before it became a howl, joining my own. My glowing hands were tangled in her amber fur, my eyes meeting her golden ones as I gave her the power of life with my touch.

  She always had a name, didn’t she? The name of my mother.

  “Iris,” I whispered. “My Iris.”

  She watched me
, allowing me to touch her and to pet her fur, even to bury my head in the musky wild scent of her back. For a moment I felt as though I was complete, like this was real. That she was there to take me away with her pups and escape the world.

  That was when I awoke from the vivid dream on my floor, still imagining myself feeling Iris’s fur beneath my fingertips. It was so real, so real beneath my hands.

  The world is dark through my window and I can scarcely believe it. Surely I had not slept all day and no one had come to awaken me?

  Suddenly, two golden eyes open in the darkness above me and I gasp, scrambling away from the dark shape with a squeak of alarm. Real…The wolf is real and standing right beside me. I have to still be dreaming as there is no other explanation for what I am seeing before me.

  “I gave you life. Blood into flesh, your soul into a new form.”

  I do not know where these words come from and even my voice seems completely different to me, older and deeper than I remember it being.

  A hand rises up to my throat as if the touch would stop the foreign words from continuing, fear gripping every part of my body as footsteps approached my door outside. Iris looked to the noise but did not leave my side when the door swung open a moment later, my aunt standing there glowering at me.

  “You are making quite a ruckus!” She is not looking to where Iris stands, not appearing to see her at all.

  When I peer over, there is just an empty space where the wolf had stood. I am still on the ground, hands reaching to the area I had seen her in before as I try to search for her. A chuff demands my attention and I look back to my aunt at the door. Behind her, the golden eyes of Iris stare; the wolf standing in the hallway.

  “Do you see her?” I venture, pointing to Iris. The moment I direct attention towards the wolf, her ears lay back tightly against her head. My aunt turns around and stares right where I am pointing but does not appear to see anything, although it seems that the longer I point at Iris the more she starts to become solid and alive. I walk past my aunt and place a hand onto Iris’s back, petting soft circles boldly as they both watch me.