{"id":143,"date":"2012-07-02T12:19:39","date_gmt":"2012-07-02T16:19:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/?p=143"},"modified":"2012-07-02T12:20:01","modified_gmt":"2012-07-02T16:20:01","slug":"zervakan-free-fantasy-novel-chapter-24","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/?p=143","title":{"rendered":"ZERVAKAN – Free Fantasy Novel – Chapter 24"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
\n\"\"<\/a>
Cover by TJ Lomas.<\/a>\n<\/div>\n
\nI’m posting a chapter from my latest fantasy novel for free every Monday and Friday (click Zervakan<\/a> above for a synopsis and to start from the beginning). It’s in a “pre-published state,” meaning you might find the occasional spelling\/grammar mistake. If you do, please leave a comment below or email me at robsteiner01 [at] gmail [dot] com.<\/p>\n

If you’re uncomfortable getting something for nothing, you can hit the PayPal Donate<\/a> button in the Tip Jar section to the right. If you donate more than $3, I’ll send you a non-DRM ebook once the book is published (summer 2012). If you donate more than $20, I’ll send you a printed copy.<\/p>\n

Thanks, and I hope you enjoy it!<\/em>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

 <\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

ZERVAKAN<\/h1>\n

by Rob Steiner<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Chapter 24<\/h2>\n

Fatimah had spent seven years in the Heiron as an acolyte and a priest, but she had never been this far down into the Heiron\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s vaults.\u00c2\u00a0 Nor had she known there were this many levels below ground.<\/p>\n

Fatimah had followed Eblin and the other four members of the Master Circle through nine arches, all opening into dark, musty rooms.\u00c2\u00a0 For each arch, one of the Master Circle had to place a hand on the right column to activate the Aspects and open the portal to the next level, for these levels were forbidden to all but the Tuathan leaders.\u00c2\u00a0 When they came to a tenth arch, Melahara gave Ollis Gray a sad look, and Ollis returned it with a slightly nervous one of his own.\u00c2\u00a0 The Holy Seat placed her right hand on the right column of the arch, while the Worldly Seat placed his left hand on the left column.\u00c2\u00a0 They both closed their eyes and uttered an incantation under their breaths that Fatimah could not hear.\u00c2\u00a0 A loud crack came from the arch, as if it had split in two, and then a dark corridor appeared beyond it.\u00c2\u00a0 Cold air rushed from out of the corridor, stinking of mold and centuries.\u00c2\u00a0 There was no other arch in the room.\u00c2\u00a0 They had reached the bottom level of the Heiron.<\/p>\n

Melahara gave Ollis a challenging glare.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153This was your idea, Worldly Seat, so you lead the way.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

Ollis held his head high and strode through the arch and into the dark corridor.\u00c2\u00a0 As soon as Ollis entered, two torches sitting in sconces on either side of the corridor burst into blue-white flames that gave off no heat.\u00c2\u00a0 Fatimah flinched at the sudden light, but Ollis continued on as if nothing had happened.\u00c2\u00a0 The further he walked down the corridor, the more torches on either side of the hall burst into flame.<\/p>\n

Melahara followed Ollis.<\/p>\n

Fatimah glanced at Eblin, who followed Melahara as if they were walking into another part of the library.\u00c2\u00a0 Fatimah stayed behind her Master, trying to match Eblin\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s same unconcerned air, but wishing for the first time that Apprentices did not have to accompany their Masters on every<\/em> part of their trade.\u00c2\u00a0 Fatimah did not look behind her, but she heard Nyram and Ocrim following closely.<\/p>\n

The corridor ran straight ahead almost fifty paces until it came to an abrupt end at a wall with three alcoves set side by side, their interiors bathed in shadow.\u00c2\u00a0 They were two paces high and set in the center of the wall.\u00c2\u00a0 Three small torches within each alcove burst into the same blue-white flame as the torches in the hall.<\/p>\n

The alcoves were empty.<\/p>\n

Ollis studied the alcoves open-mouthed, while Melahara inhaled sharply.\u00c2\u00a0 The others stared at the alcoves in shocked silence.<\/p>\n

Ollis turned to Melahara.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It was you and your priests that were supposed to guard the Delving Jars.\u00c2\u00a0 What have you done with them?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

Melahara opened and closed her mouth a few times, then said in a tight voice, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153No priest has been in this chamber for a thousand years.\u00c2\u00a0 And lest you forget, it takes both<\/em> of us to open the arch.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Then where are they?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Nyram asked as she inspected the alcoves where the jars once stood.\u00c2\u00a0 She ran her fingers along the pedestal of the alcove in the center of the wall and looked at the dust trail they made.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153These have been empty a long time.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

The others crowded around the left and right alcoves, and noticed dust covering the pedestals of both in equal abundance.<\/p>\n

Ocrim Tylea said, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Whatever happened to them, happened a long time ago.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d\u00c2\u00a0 He looked at Ollis and said, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153So I think we can cease the accusations.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

Ignoring Ocrim, Ollis said, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153It is impossible to reach this chamber without going through the arch, and the arch can only be opened by the Worldly Seat and<\/em> the Holy Seat together.\u00c2\u00a0 So how were the Jars stolen?\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Perhaps it is possible,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Eblin said, leaning on her staff, \u00e2\u20ac\u0153the Jars were never here to begin with.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

Melahara shook her head.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153But I have records from Kalisha Mazid, the first Holy Seat.\u00c2\u00a0 She describes this room and how she was one of the priests who stole the Jars from the Fomorians.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

\u00e2\u20ac\u0153Alon Grete\u00e2\u20ac\u2122s journals said the same thing,\u00e2\u20ac\u009d Ollis said, staring at the empty alcoves, speaking of the first Worldly Seat.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153Why would they both lie?\u00c2\u00a0 That does not make sense.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n

Eblin chuckled.\u00c2\u00a0 \u00e2\u20ac\u0153I did not say it made sense.\u00c2\u00a0 Only that it was possible.\u00c2\u00a0 All this dust says the hall has not been disturbed for hundreds of years.\u00c2\u00a0 If the Jars were not here to begin with, then they were certainly taken out of here a long time ago.\u00c2\u00a0 In any case, we need another plan.\u00e2\u20ac\u009d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Cover by TJ Lomas. I’m posting a chapter from my latest fantasy novel for free every Monday and Friday (click Zervakan above for a synopsis and to start from the beginning). It’s in a “pre-published state,” meaning you might find the occasional spelling\/grammar mistake. If you do, please leave a comment below or email me […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7,28,14],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-143","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-free-stuff","category-novels","category-zervakan"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=143"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/143\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=143"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=143"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/robsteinerauthor.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=143"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}