The Hallowed Forsaken: First Book of the Aradian Read online

  The sounds of savage combat continued to overwhelm her senses. Try as she might to make sense of her situation, she was only aware of the chaos surrounding her and a constant, agonising throb in her arm. She could feel a numbness beginning to take hold of the entry wound, but dare not open her eyes to look at it.

  The cries of fallen worshippers in the building petrified her, then came the unexpected contact of hands, startling her again, wrapping around and lifting her into the air. Instinctively, she kicked and writhed, the energy to do so coming from deep reserves of adrenaline, as her bodily functions managed to react in the face of some new external threat.

  The cold church floor rushed up to meet her and fresh pain shot down her shoulder as she impacted with stone slabs. Sophie sobbed, instantly regretting her decision. Her vision returned to pinpricks of light, bursting through an all-encompassing darkness. Through it, she was just able to distinguish the elegant form of her mother, cowering behind a shattered pew to one side of the church hall. Gradually, through sobs and gritted teeth, Sophie crawled to her mother and desperately reached for her hand.

  “M… mom, help… me…” Her voice left her lips as an unintelligible drawl. Cecilia cast her eyes down at her daughter’s broken body. With a single dismissive shove and a snarl, she forever shattered Sophie’s heart.

  “You?! You rejected a god; you are no daughter of mine!”

  Sophie felt the dark wood smack against her head as her mother pushed her away. Now the light left her eyes entirely, the world darkened, and at last she fell into unconsciousness, eyes brimming with tears.

  Sariyah hurtled backward, sprawling across the floor, finally coming to a stop next to the fallen body of a Mage. The Consuls had informed her that Vincent Lockwood was merely a priest, influential, but with no real magical power. That was a tremendous lie, she thought, as she rose onto one leg, staring at her enemy. Lockwood held two spheres of crackling yellow energy in his upturned palms and his eyes glowed with the same light.

  Narrowly dodging a sizzling blast of energy, and losing a few hairs in the process, Sariyah observed the ongoing struggle around her. The two Sorcerers that accompanied her lay deceased at one end of the hall, having been caught in Lockwood’s deadly shockwaves. Multiple Mages had fallen alongside many worshippers and were in the process of being forced into a retreat, blinding yellow energy leaving their palms, eyes shining with lethal grace. Blood and corpses stained the once opulent purples and luxury fabrics of the nave. Then Sariyah finally caught sight of the young girl she had freed from the altar moments before.

  Without a second’s hesitation she made haste towards the girl, slumped against a pew, dress stained with gore, the open knife wound on her arm still seeping blood. Sariyah knew she would die of blood loss if she wasn’t provided medical attention and soon. Lockwood predicted this manoeuvre and fired a sustained scorching beam of energy in her path. Sariyah made a quick response with a slight inflection of her wrist, whipping the air towards him. She disrupted his attack, knocking it off balance by precisely the right amount to allow her to slip under the beam and reach the girl.

  Sariyah scooped her up in a single swift movement, cradling her unconscious body close. Catching an encroaching energy blast in the corner of her eye, she twisted, letting the crackling energy disperse on her jacket. The reinforced clothing took the majority of the damage, but nevertheless the blunt force of the shock caused her to stumble, almost tripping over fallen debris. Looking up, she could see the battle was approaching defeat. If she didn’t make her own fast escape within the next minute, she would be alone and entirely overrun. “Just need to get outside” she repeated to herself multiple times while bounding towards the ruined entrance. The militia forces holding the point were rapidly thinning in number, due to the onslaught of worshippers, sending columns of air and shafts of sizzling energy alike.

  Wood splintered and a chair leg snapped over Sariyah’s back – a worshipper attempting to intercept her escape. Despite the pain, the force propelled her on. She slipped past two Mages and called for a retreat. Like ants to their queen, the remaining Mages instantly disengaged from the battle and fell back to the treeline with startling pace. Sariyah, feet on natural earth once more, channelled her magic down and sank into the ground taking the girl with her. As the earth resealed over her, so the cries of the skirmish ceased.

  Sophie became dimly aware of an incredible rumbling of stone, like that of a quarry or workmen drilling in the roadway, and the bitter taste of dirt. But the sound felt far away and she was unable to tell if her eyes were open or closed. Darkness consumed all and she felt as though her life was slipping through her fingers.

  5

  The World You Didn’t Know

  The bedroom was cramped and rectangular, filled with box upon box of unsorted clothes and various belongings. Sophie had never seen the room before in her life and couldn’t begin to fathom how she had come to be there. Yet, she couldn’t help but feel a sense of equanimity as she lay, cosy and sheltered in the comfortable bed. She noted that she didn’t seem to be able to focus properly, as if she were drifting through time, half asleep, entirely indifferent and detached from the world and any concerns it might bring.

  Blissful though this mental quietude was, she tried to constrain her thoughts, angling them towards the previous day. She had been betrayed, desecrated by her own parents – those who should have sworn and held a duty to protect her! She thought of the creature that had almost devoured her soul; its hideous appearance and abhorrent voice. Had these thoughts encroached on any other day, the notion of these horrific truths would have brought Sophie to tears. But not this day. At this precise moment she felt simply fine.

  Other questions drifted across her consciousness. There was the quandary of what species that creature was. And how, by any understanding of natural science, were the people in that church able to perform the feats they did? Finally, who was the woman who had saved her? All these questions could be dealt with another day, Sophie thought dreamily. For the present, all she wished was to savour this moment of serenity.

  The bedroom door opened, shattering the silence with an appalling creek, disturbing Sophie’s tranquillity and provoking a sigh. She turned her head a fraction to see who was entering. It was the woman with the dark brown hair. She appeared tired to Sophie; perhaps in desperate need of a full night’s sleep.

  “Hey, you’re awake,” the woman said. “I hope you don’t mind my intruding. I was just coming to check on you.”

  Her voice… it was like satin to Sophie’s ears. Soft, gentle, delicate in cadence. Sophie couldn’t seem to bring herself to reply, despite trying hard.

  “Oh… oh, yes!” The woman remembered something and skipped towards Sophie to kneel beside her. Cautiously, she reached for her arm. Sophie now noticed that it had been carefully and securely bandaged. The bandages were steadily unwrapped and the woman removed a micro-thin sheet of warm metal from underneath. Sophie craned her neck to view her wounded arm, but the woman replaced the bandages as swiftly and skilfully as she’d undone them before she could see.

  With the metal sheet removed, Sophie could feel her senses reactivating, righting themselves. Her thoughts unscrambled and began to arrange themselves in a logical flow once more. Most importantly, she found herself able to form a coherent sentence.

  “What… what was that? I couldn’t think clearly.”

  Her words were slothful as her tongue reacquainted itself with the art of articulation.

  The woman looked down at the metal plate in her hand before placing it in a first aid box to one side of the bed.

  “Ah, it’s a hormonic regulation plate.”

  Sophie gave no reply.

  “It calms people down and keeps them happy after a traumatic experience… while they heal,” she added, noting Sophie’s puzzlement. “They’re addictive, so must only be used when necessary after a serious event. I figured your situation counted.”

  The woman sounded nervous, but had a
very kindly demeanour.

  Sophie stared in utter perplexity at her rescuer. She owed this woman a debt; she’d just saved her life.

  “Thank you… for saving me,” she managed.

  “Aww, it’s okay. It’s my job after all. I’m Sariyah by the way. Sariyah Pierce.”

  She gave a reassuring smile that Sophie appreciated.

  “I’m Sophie Lockwood, heir to the Lockwood estate, franchise and patent. Although… I’m not so sure I am now.”

  The realisation of her lost status dawned on her.

  “Where am I? What happened? How did my father summon that creature?” Now the questions tumbled out.

  Sariyah made a motion to rest her hand reassuringly on the girl, but Sophie rejected it and tucked her hand back under the covers. I may owe her my life, but I can still preserve my dignity, she decided as she did so.

  Sariyah retracted her hand, slightly embarrassed by her presumption that compassion would be welcomed. Instead, she pulled over one of the many boxes in the room to use for a seat.

  “What I can tell you is that you’re in my home right now – my guest bedroom.”

  “Well, it looks like you’ve barely moved in with all these boxes,” Sophie retorted. “Not much room for guests!”

  Feeling increasingly more like herself, Sophie’s natural inclination to command and marshal any conversation she thought she could had quickly returned.

  “Ah, well… I haven’t had much chance to unpack,” Sariyah explained defensively. “I’ve been working every day since I got here. This is my first day off, actually.”

  The poor woman seemed acutely aware of the comparative squalor in which she lived. However, working daily without some form of repose was a conviction Sophie could respect.

  “I’m sorry, that was a little rude of me. I only meant that it seems a little busy to have many people visit.” Apology made, Sophie returned to her queries. “But what happened? How did you all do what you did? I have never seen anything like it before. It was like magic in a film.”

  Sariyah let out a short laugh.

  “Well, you’re not so far off there. I’m not sure I should explain until I have approval.”

  She seemed to backtrack. Sophie frowned.

  “No, please… I must have an explanation. I need one. You owe me that much!”

  Sophie watched the woman hesitate. She could see the internal argument taking place.

  “Okay…” Sariyah paused, searching for the best approach in which to shatter this girl’s beliefs and perspective on reality. “You’ve seen movies and read books where people use magic to do amazing things, right? Well, some of those acts aren’t fiction.”

  Sophie raised a sceptical eyebrow. “So, you’re telling me you’re magic then?”

  “I am. Just like the stories.” Sariyah smiled as she said it, seemingly proud of the fact.

  “Where’s your wand?”

  “My what?”

  “Your wand. You know, expelliarmus!” Sophie retained her composure, despite wanting to chuckle at the madness of the conversation.

  Sariyah let out the chuckle Sophie wished to.

  “We don’t use wands – it doesn’t work like that.”

  Sophie frowned at Sariyah’s ineptitude at explaining the topic to her.

  “You said it was like the magic in books?”

  Sariyah sat back a little and revaluated her explanation.

  “Magic is the lifeblood of the earth. Every person has a connection from their being to what we call the source. Some have a stronger connection than others. Those people can harness that connection and… sort of… channel magic and use it to do amazing things.”

  Slowly nodding, Sophie attempted to rationally decipher the explanation to no avail.

  “Like the force in Star Wars?”

  “Uhm, a little bit I guess,” Sariyah replied. “But magic – pure magical energy – is far too unstable and powerful to be wielded in its natural state. Doing so is impossible. But if someone ever did manage it, most agree that it would be catastrophic for the balance of the world. Instead, Sorcerers like me use it to accentuate or augment natural processes. For instance, the slight heat created from friction can be converted and channelled into a roaring flame. Or a trickle of a breeze made by waving your hand quickly can be turned into a gust of wind.”

  Each utterance from Sariyah continued to astound Sophie, yet multiplied her doubts.

  It can’t be true, I’d have seen it. Then again, after yesterday maybe I already have?

  The last dregs of the effect of the special metal Sariyah had removed were ebbing away and Sophie began to feel an uneasy tightening in her chest. In response, she quickly distracted herself with a demand, surmising that if all her doubts were expelled, her nerves might quell.

  “Show me some,” she said.

  Sariyah shrugged and muttered to herself. “I’ve come this far…”

  She raised her hand for Sophie to clearly see. Pressing her middle finger to her thumb, Sariyah began to rub them together, gently but intently. For a few seconds nothing extraordinary happened, then Sariyah let her fingers snap in the traditional way with a loud click. In its wake was left a burning flame, seemingly sparked from nowhere, now burning tamely in her palm. Sophie could feel the heat from where she lay, a metre back, supported by her elbows.

  “How did you do that?!”

  “Magic!” Sariyah laughed and extinguished the flame with the flex and curling of her fingers. “You said show me.”

  Scratching her head, Sophie’s nervous tightening waned to be replaced with a mix of pure astonishment, exhilaration and curiosity.

  “So I did.”

  The situation she found herself in was bittersweet. She felt that somehow a new reality lay before her. The ability to create fire, with a click of the fingers? What other avenues were there to explore that had previously lain shrouded in mystery? Sophie could only guess. But with those such as her father in the world, summoning malevolent creatures to consume his own daughter in a wicked sacrifice, no doubt external threats would likely become a prominent feature of her life from now on.

  “Why didn’t I know about this until now?”

  This query was met with hesitation, before a delayed and truncated response.

  “The majority of people don’t have a strong enough connection to the source to harness magic. Some people with magic think that is pure evolution, the survival of the fittest, and that we should rule that majority. Others, like me, think that is an outdated concept. Ruling by fear and domination would only cause more troubles, as well as being morally corrupt.”

  The concept resonated with Sophie. It was straightforward to determine which of the two categories her parents fit into. Perhaps even herself, until this recent dissolution. The notion that she could be elevated higher than others by birth right had always pleased her greatly. The thought of the masses, cowering before her might, brought a smile also. However, there was one thing within this series of uncertainties and revelations she was sure of. Without a shadow of a doubt, Sophie refused to find herself on the same side or within the same ideology as her mother and father. The very thought of their acts sickened her, not only with disgust, but also sorrow. Furthermore, she did not want to see all those of a “lower class” trampled underfoot. She was beginning to take to Sariyah rather fondly. Her timorous sensibilities coupled with a clear competence in ability (even if she would not state that herself) was attractive to Sophie. She could get along with this person.

  As her mind wandered, Sariyah addressed her once more.

  “We need to get to the Adytum as soon as possible, if you feel well enough to travel a little.”

  The mention of being led to another unknown location rapidly welcomed the return of the tightened chest.

  “No. The last time I was led somewhere new, my parents…” Sophie faltered, greatly resisting the urge to let tears fall, the calming effects of the magical device now entirely diminished.

  Sariya
h took Sophie’s hand successfully this time. There was an incredible physical warmth to the touch. Emotional warmth too. It alleviated the pressure.

  “I know, it’s horrible Sophie, but I promise you, the Adytum is a good place. It’s where other people like me work. We fight the wrongdoers and protect people like you – not like your father.”

  Gazing into her saviour’s eyes Sophie felt a deep-seated trust growing within. Her subconscious confirmed the truth and the good in Sariyah’s intentions. After a full minute of deliberation she found the strength to reply.

  “Okay, I trust you.”

  “Alright. I’ll give you some time to steady yourself and freshen up. Call if you need help and I’ll be downstairs when you’re ready to go. Okay?”

  Sariyah gave her that comforting smile once more.

  “Thank you,” Sophie nodded.

  Sariyah swiftly rose up and exited the room, closing the door behind her.

  “This is… I have no words to describe it!” Sophie whispered. She lay back for a moment, dumbfounded, her eyes closed.

  The ramifications of this new knowledge of the world began to take hold of her. Gradually, it grew inside, at first exciting and enticing, but soon intimidating her. It was foreign, unknown. Commandeering her train of thought, Sophie let out a deep breath through pursed lips. She listened to the faint whistle that escaped with it, aiding the final resolution of her thoughts.

  “Magic… it exists! People can use it to harm me. Others can use it to protect me. If I learn more about it, then perhaps I may be able to protect and elevate myself? Prove I’m worth more than to be chastised, to be sacrificed. Yes, I can do this. I will never be powerless again!”