Flash Point
Elemental Trials, #2
by Ronelle Antoinette
Date of
Publication: July 7th 2017
Cover
Artist: Mar Fandos
Publisher:
Ronelle Antoinette
Genre:
Fantasy Romance
Tagline: The choices of a few will ignite a realm
BLURB
Scandal will shake foundations.
A night of careless passion
leaves Battlemage Jex Xander and Adept Enari Alycon in a precarious position.
Long-time lovers they might be, but the Imperial ambassador and the daughter of
Egalion’s High Mage have rather public roles in the court—whether they wish it
or not—and scandal couldn’t come at a worse time.
Treachery will tip balances.
When a hostile kingdom
reluctantly agrees to parley, the fate of two-thousand years of peace is on the
line. In the midst of negotiations, Enari becomes the target of one of the
Greater Maelstrom. She and Jex must race against time to save her life and that
of her unborn child. What happens when an earth-shattering secret, a demon bent
on destruction, and a kingdom teetering on the brink of war collide is anyone’s
guess.
Choices will have consequences.
The decisions of a few will
determine the fate of many, and who or what will remain standing in the end is
still uncertain. Hearts and lives are on the cusp of irrevocable change…and not
necessarily for the better.
And secrets? Those will change
everything.
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Enari
Alycon and Jex Xander were the last two mages to enter the shadowed chamber.
She
hesitated on the threshold, instinct making her clutch his hand as her eyes
struggled to pierce the darkness. The single tapers that stood to either side
of the altar were small and insufficient to dispel the thick gloom. Dizziness
and nausea overcame her as the strong incense permeated her lungs. The room
felt oppressive, claustrophobic, and her mind screamed at her to retreat.
Jex’s
hand closed around her wrist in warning.
“Remember,”
he whispered, “once we step inside, you’ll need to remain absolutely silent
until the ceremony is complete. No matter what happens, do not make a sound,
understand?”
His
breath was warm and the soft kiss he pressed to her temple made her shiver. She
nodded and hesitantly followed her Chosen inside.
He closed
the door behind them. The soft boom reminded her of the latch on the door to
the Hall of the Dead; solid and inexorable.
Final.
Jex led
her up the aisle at a slow and measured pace, their steps muffled more than
they should have been in the stone chamber. The shadows seemed to whisper words
too soft to discern, a dark susurration against her senses. The sensation was
like cobwebs and moth wings and the touch of a burial shroud all mixed together.
After
passing the last row of benches and their silent occupants, Enari discovered
that what she had originally taken for a shadow cast by the altar was instead a
large, smooth-edged opening in the floor. Her Chosen’s hands guiding her with
confidence as he directed her to kneel, adjusted the fall of her skirt, and
placed her hands in her lap. He cupped the back of her head and tilted it
forward until all she could see were the stones beneath her knees and that
yawning pit. The touch withdrew and she heard the rustle of his robes as he
took his place behind her.
It was
only at this angle she saw the faint reflection of candlelight in dark water. A
pool then, and not an empty well as she first assumed.
The
realization was not as comforting as it should have been.
“Enari
Alycon, daughter of Eryk Alycon and Tanith Hithaerien, today is the day of your
Ascension. You have entered this chamber in a state of flux, tempered from
apprenticeship but not yet forged as an adept. You are Initiate, the
in-between.” The deep, strong voice of her father issued from within the dark
cowl of the figure in front of her. “As those who came before were tried, so
you shall be. Who among you will stand witness?”
Enari was
confused. What trial? Hadn’t she passed all the tests the week before? She’d
thought the Rite of Ascension a mere formality, if a secret one, but now it
sounded that assumption had been incorrect.
“We
will,” came the unified and ringing response from those seated behind her.
Enari
shivered again, cognizant of the power behind the declaration. The touch of
their voices was the only warmth in this brooding place and she was grateful
for it.
“And who
among you will hold the door for her?”
“I will,”
Jex confirmed, his voice strong and certain.
“Then let
it be.”
Her
father turned to the altar and picked up the metal fragment. Motioning for Jex
to step forward, he pressed the weapon into his hand.
Enari
watched from beneath her lashes without raising her head, seeing the glimmer of
candle-flame slide along the razor’s edge.
Her
Chosen went to his knees in front of her. He raised the shard, letting her
examine it for a heartbeat or two, then used the blade to cut her palm and his
own. Enari winced at the line of pain that blazed across her skin, biting back
a hiss just in time to keep from breaking the mandate of silence. Jex pressed
their weeping palms together and laced his fingers through hers.
She could
almost taste her own dread now, bitter as a mouthful of lemon rind.
“Blood to
blood and gift to gift,” Jex intoned, “I lend you my strength for the test
ahead. I will hold the door so you may pass and may it be with joy that I close
it after your return.” There was a hint of fear in his emerald eyes as he spoke
the final words.
“Initiate,
it is time for you to face The Pool and The Dweller below,” her father
announced.
Sweat
broke out across her forehead and the back of her neck as her eyes settled on
The Pool.
Jex rose
to his feet, fingers still twined with hers, and she balked, not wanting to go
any nearer to that still and menacing water. He reached behind her and seized
her belt, forcing her up and forward. His hand remained at the small of her
back to hold her in place once they stood at the very lip of The Pool.
Her
stomach knotted and a slithering nausea twisted its greasy fingers around her
throat. She swallowed hard and tasted bile.
Jex put
his mouth against her ear and began to speak.
“We have
to lower you into the water. Take a deep breath, close your eyes, and don’t be
afraid. It’ll be over before you know it.”
She
turned to him, shaking her head. More than anything, she did not want to let
that black water touch her. Blue eyes met green and she pled the only way she
could.
His
expression went flat and his voice hardened. “You asked me to serve as your
Chosen. Let me do my duty.”
“Be
silent!” the High Mage barked.
Jex gave
him a dirty look, but nodded once and the two men took hold of her, each
putting a hand under one of her arms and grasping her hands in theirs. With
agonizing slowness, they began to lower her.
The first
shock of bitter cold stole her breath.
As the
velvet of her robe became wet, it dragged on her and clung to her legs. She
kicked, trying to free her feet but the heavy fabric stuck fast.
Before
she was half-submerged, she started to tremble. The water felt just short of
freezing solid and had a slimy quality that disgusted her.
Soon,
only her head remained clear and Jex was crouching at her side, still gripping
her bloody hand. His other settled on her hair.
“Deep
breath, now,” he directed.
And
before she could even think to scream, he jerked his hand free of hers and
thrust her head beneath the surface.
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Author Info
Ronelle Antoinette lives in
western Colorado with her husband, two cats, and one
dog-who-believes-he's-a-person. While she is a mother to none, she’s an auntie
to what should qualify as a small army. She is an admitted caffeine addict,
chocoholic, and hopeless romantic who has carried on a passionate affair with
the genre of fantasy since she was old enough to read 'chapter books'. She
dabbled in creative writing for many years and even considered it as a major in
college. (She ended up getting a Bachelor's degree in Counseling Psychology.)
She published her first novel, Errant Spark, in July of 2016.
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