Authors: Michael G. Manning
Centyr Dominance (32 page)
“Illeniel’s Doom,” he responded, tapping his temple.
“This thing that is in my head and has haunted my family for two thousand years.
There’s a reason for it. It wasn’t just stolen, although that’s what was
believed at first. Now I have the reason in front of me, or half of the reason
anyway. Your brother is the other half.”
“You know I didn’t inherit it from my father,” said Moira.
The knowledge of the loshti was only present in one descendant in each
generation. Her biological father hadn’t had it even though he had been an
Illeniel.
“That’s the beauty of it,” said Mordecai. “It’s your
gift that’s important. You are the last living Centyr wizard, and your brother
is the first Illeniel wizard. He does have the knowledge granted by the
loshti, but that is only part of this puzzle.”
“But he’s
not
the first Illeniel wizard.”
“Do you remember the story I told you a few years back,
about Tyrion?” reminded Mordecai.
“Yes, it was awful,” she said with some distaste.
“Remember the gift of the Illeniel Grove?”
She pursed her lips, “Tyrion didn’t have it. None of
them did, because the Illeniel Grove didn’t create human slaves. And even when
he tried to steal it, it didn’t work.”
“That’s right,” said her father, “The breeders didn’t
work, but your brother has the gift now, even though he didn’t get it from me.”
“Mother?” exclaimed Moira, referring to Penny now.
“Wait, does that mean you’re cousins?”
He nodded, “It’s been two thousand years, but yes, we
have to be, although we’re dozens if not hundreds of times removed.”
“So her gift, prophecy, it comes from the Illeniel
Grove?”
“I can’t prove it. I don’t know her family history,
but it’s the only reasonable assumption. I do know that there has never been a
human wizard with her gift—until now, at precisely the same time that the great
enemy of the She’Har has reemerged.”
Moira winced, “You’re saying my brother is some sort
of wizard messiah, aren’t you?”
Great, just fucking great. He’ll be
gloating about this forever.
Mort saw the look in her eye and began chuckling, “No,
but without him we would all be in a great deal of trouble. The two of you
will save the world I hope, with a little help from your aging father.”
He started walking toward the tunnel that led out,
“Let’s go home.”
As Moira started to follow him her foot scuffed the
dirt that covered the floor and she caught a glimpse of something carved
there. Runes, etched in the stone. Her magesight stretched out and followed
their shapes beneath the dirt, seeing where they went. They circled the limits
of the room and a smaller circle enclosed the place her father had been
standing earlier.
He hadn’t taken any chances. He must have inscribed
them a week before when he had come alone.
Perhaps she should have been offended, but somehow
seeing that he had made the preparations, just in case she had turned on him,
didn’t bother her. Instead it brought an odd comfort. The afternoon light
silhouetted her father against the cave opening and she stared up at his tall
shoulders. On impulse she ran forward to embrace him from behind.
The world was a terrible place, and she might be a
monster herself, but her father’s strong back made her feel safe.
“What’s that for?” he asked, looking back.
“Nothing,” she replied and then she squeezed his belly
with her hands, “You’re getting fat.”
“A bit of a belly is a sign of success in a man,” he
growled, “like a mane on a lion.”
“Keep telling yourself that…”
Mordecai sighed, “Back to what we were talking about.
Remember what happened in that story? After Tyrion stole the loshti, when he
began making preparations…”
She didn’t want to think about it, but he began
telling it anyway, reminding her of the terrible things that had happened two
thousand years before, when the She’Har were exterminated and humanity almost
died with them.
Coming
in the Winter of 2016:
The
Betrayer’s Bane
The
story of Tyrion Illeniel concludes in the third book of the Embers of Illeniel
series. One man will sacrifice everything, and everyone, in his quest for
vengeance, but the final cost is his own humanity.
Coming in 2017
Demonhome
Matthew
Illeniel seeks the source of the intruders into his world, traveling across
dimensions to find answers. He must unravel the mystery of the She’Har’s great
enemy but the bigger challenge may lie in discovering the secrets of humanity
itself.
For more information about the Mageborn
series check out the author’s Facebook page:
https://www.facebook.com/MagebornAuthor
or visit the website: