Before I get started: Magic Fell isn’t a romance. It has a romantic sub-plot, but overall it’s a high fantasy adventure.
[waits]
Still with me? Okay then.
You might already know the backstory behind this. A novel written on request from a beloved grandmother. A once-popular role playing forum set in a mages’ guild. If I were the type to make bad puns, I might say the combination was…magic.
…
Sorry. I’ll try not to do that again for the duration of the post.
Magic Fell is the first in a trilogy that centers on Tasis Kadara, his adopted sister Zaree, and their friend Kelwin. Oh, and the cat. K’yerin would happily tell you that he’s the most important character in the book.
I wanted to write some short pieces to share with you during this blog tour, but as this is the first book, it took me a while to figure out what I could write that wouldn’t involve spoilers. And then it hit me – why not write the very beginning?
In the prologue, you witness the end of the guild, a millennium before Tasis is even born. The leader of the guild at that point in time is a woman named Trivintaie, who washed up on the isle’s beach when she was a young woman. I thought it might be fun to write a few short pieces set before the prologue, starting from when Triv washes up, to give everyone a better feel for what exactly is lost when the guild is destroyed.
So read on, and I hope you enjoy. And don’t forget to enter the giveaway for a paperback or ebook copy of Magic Fell! I’ll be pulling winners on May 29th.
***
“You’re sure about this?” Triv asked, giving Trekelm a sideways glance from the comfortable library chair she was curled up in. “I mean, I saw what it did to Falcon.”
The guild’s leader let out a snort. “Falcon. That girl was far too early in her training to attempt that, and she did it without permission or guidance because she wanted to impress you.”
“It took her a month to wake up,” Trivintaie said firmly. “No matter her reasons, I don’t want that to happen to me.”
“Please,” Corrin snorted from his seat across the room. “You have a damn dragon for a master. You could probably flick your fingers to do this, then go engage in a round of swordplay with Gyr. Uh, Master Gyr,” he amended quickly as Trekelm glared at him. “Oh come on, Master. Gyr’s the one who told us he didn’t want us using some stuffy title to address him.”
“You’re not a master yet, so you’ll address him with the respect he deserves,” Trekelm told the young man firmly before pointing at Triv. “And you need to remember that I may not be your master, but I do lead the guild. Do you really think I’d tell you you’re ready if I wasn’t 100% certain?”
“Well, no,” Triv allowed grudgingly. “But please remember that I was the one who found Falcon after she cast the spell.”
“She succeeded,” Corrin reminded her.
Triv shot him a glare. “She did, but it nearly killed her.”
“You’ll be fine,” Trekelm said in what Triv assumed was supposed to be a reassuring voice. It wasn’t. Not really.
“If I die, I’m having Corrin resurrect me so I can smack you,” she muttered as she opened the leather book she’d placed on her lap earlier. It had no title, but the pages held spells in a language no one truly understood that she’d learned over the past few years. She flipped open pages carelessly, pausing when she finally reached the entry she was looking for. She stared at it for a long moment before looking over at Corrin. He nodded and gave her a wink. She rolled her eyes, an expression that was completely ruined by the fact that she could feel her face heating, and spoke the words on the page.
“Tova songei temi dova.”
There was a deep tone, more vibration than sound, that shuddered through the library. Trivintaie barely noticed the startled look Corrin shot Trekelm, instead concentrating on chanting the words. She wasn’t sure it was even working, until suddenly a shock of magic ran through her body, making her scream the words.
And then, just as suddenly as it started, everything went still and silent.
There was a hole hanging in mid-air in front of Trivintaie.
“You did it!” Corrin shouted with a laugh. He made to join her, but Trekelm grabbed him and held him back.
“Wait,” the guild leader hissed. “Her familiar hasn’t appeared yet.”
“Yes, he has,” Triv said with a short laugh.
As one, Corrin and Trekelm stared at the strange opening. There was something…twitching?
“Whiskers,” Corrin said. “Whatever it is, it has whiskers.”
“It’s safe,” Triv said to the owner of the whiskers that were peeking into the room. It was odd, seeing only the strands and nothing else. “I didn’t call out for you to make you a slave.”
Truth.
The voice echoed in Triv’s head, and she held back a laugh of relief.
“Truth,” she agreed. “No one here will hurt you. I seek only guidance and kinship.”
The whiskers moved, pressing into the room where they were quickly following by a nose, then an entire muzzle, then the head of a cat. A purple cat. It blinked as it took in its surroundings, then turned its intelligent gaze to Trivintaie. The feline eyes widened in what Triv would have thought was surprise if it had been a human.
You’re–
“I’m Trivintaie,” Triv said. “I’m hoping we can be friends.”
The rest of the cat slid into view as it leapt gracefully to the floor from wherever it had been called from, the hole in the air closing behind him. We will be very good friends, the cat assured her. It stopped to groom its tail, and Triv was made aware in the most awkward manner possible that the feline was in fact a he, not an it. My name is K’yerin. I look forward to seeing what you can do.
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Thunder rumbled overhead. Tasis’s body felt as if it had been pricked by a thousand needles, much like his limbs had fallen asleep and were in the process of waking back up. He shivered, more from fear than cold, and stood silently. After a moment the feeling faded. When nothing else happened after a few minutes, he said the phrase again, his voice taking on a firm edge.
The room glowed faintly with the words, as if another candle had been lit. Tasis’s eyes widened, but he said the phrase again, this time feeling as if he were unable to stop the words from escaping his mouth. He repeated it once more, then twice, and it quickly became a chant. The room seemed to fill with light, and Tasis had to shield his eyes. His vision started to blur, and he felt as if he were being physically pulled by the words. As he chanted the walls began to crackle as if charged with the lightning outside.
He was yelling the words now, though he was unaware of it. The only thing he was aware of was the pull and the feeling of energy draining from his body. He tried to shut his eyes against the blinding light but found he couldn’t. His body began to tremble, and he was quite sure he was going to pass out if he couldn’t stop. There was another clap of thunder over the house, and the crackling energy in the walls seemed to gather tightly into itself.
Tasis’s knees gave out, and he landed on the floor. The energy imploded, and as he began to lose consciousness he could see a strange hole of some sort hanging in midair. Something emerged from the hole, and he heard the familiar voice speak to him once more.
It certainly took you long enough.
With that, Tasis was thrust into blissful darkness.
Tasis was standing on the cliff, but he wasn’t alone. He could see himself standing there, facing an army. No, it wasn’t him, he realized after a moment. It was the woman from the first dream, and the likeness was uncanny, despite the fact the woman in front of him was obviously human. The man leading the army yelled something at the woman, but Tasis couldn’t hear him. It was like trying to listen to someone speak underwater. The woman had a defiant look on her face as she yelled something back at the man before turning and raising her arms. The wall of water rose from the sea and hovered above them for a brief moment before it began to crash down.
Tasis woke screaming, only to find himself in bed with Zaree hovering over him. “Thank the Maker,” Zaree cried out, throwing herself at him. “You finally woke up.”
Tasis sat up and put his hands to his face as he began to sob. Where the tears came from, he wasn’t sure, but Zaree held him tight as he did. “You’ve been out cold for two days,” she said softly. “I came home to find you on the floor, and the healer couldn’t figure out what might be wrong with you. I didn’t know what to do.”
Tasis wiped his eyes and gave Zaree a horrified look. “Two days?”
Zaree nodded, leaning her forehead against his. “Nothing would rouse you. The oddest thing happened, though. When I came home, there was a strange-colored cat sitting on our porch. When I opened the door, he came straight to your room and sat down right next to you. He seemed friendly enough, so I let him stay. We could use a cat anyway, to keep mice out of the pantry.”
Mice? The voice in his head sounded indignant. A silver tabby cat—who actually looked vaguely purple, Tasis realized—jumped onto the bed and butted its head against his arm. Tasis reached out mechanically and stroked it between the ears, earning himself a loud purr as the cat settled into his lap, looking pleased with itself.
“We ought to name him if we’re going to keep him,” Zaree noted as she gave the cat’s ears a fond rub.
“K’yerin,” Tasis said immediately, not sure how he had known. “His name is K’yerin.”
Zaree hummed thoughtfully before giving a quick nod. “I like it. K’yerin it is.” She cleared her throat and glanced over at Tasis. “Do you remember what happened before you passed out?”
“I was….” Tasis paused as a flash of memory came back to him. The walls glowing and crackling, a thunderclap, a hole in midair. All centered around one phrase.
“What is it?” Zaree asked, sounding even more worried than before. “What were you doing?”
Tasis sighed heavily, rubbing his face with his hands before looking down at the cat in his lap. K’yerin looked up at him, and Tasis could swear the feline was smirking at him.
“I think I was doing magic,” Tasis said in a heavy voice.
Zaree went pale. “Oh dear,” she said for lack of a better expression. “That could cause problems.”
Tasis sighed again and leaned back in bed. “Don’t I know it.”
K’yerin merely purred.
Still want more?
Buy Links:
Harmony Ink Press: https://www.harmonyinkpress.com/books/magic-fell-by-andi-van-382-b
Dreamspinner Press: http://www.dreamspinnerpress.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=7662
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Magic-Fell-Andi-Van-ebook/dp/B01EM71NTI
Blurb:
Past and present are about to collide, and the world will never be the same.
Magic has been missing from the world for a millennium, and itís needed now more than ever. It falls to young Tasis Kadara to revive the fabled Magesí Guild of the Dragonís Claw. But in a culture where arcane power is forbidden and practitioners are executed, Tasis will have to keep his own aptitude for magic secret. With nothing to direct them besides bizarre dreams and a mysterious cat, Tasis and his sister Zaree undertake a quest to discover the hidden island that was once home to the guild.
Kelwin Tiovolk departs his village following his mentorís suggestion. As an elf wandering into human civilization, heís in danger simply for being who he is. A brawl at an inn leads him straight into the path of the young man heís been dreaming about, and heís compelled to help Tasis and his sister any way he can. Together, the trio might have a chance of accomplishing their missionóor the attempt might kill them.
Bio:
Andi Van is a foul-mouthed troublemaker who lives near San Diego with a small fluffy thing named Koi, a baseball bat thatís forever being used for things other than baseball, and a fondness for rum and caffeine (though not necessarily together).
Andi is fluent in three languages (English, sarcasm, and profanity), and takes pride in a highly developedóif somewhat bizarreósense of humor.
E-mail: [email protected]
Website: http://www.andivan.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/defiantandi
Twitter: @DefiantAndi