Oblivion's Queen Read online

  Oblivion’s Queen

  The Risen Queen - Book 3

  M H Johnson

  Copyright © 2018 by M H Johnson

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This is a work of fiction. All names, characters, places, and events are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to real persons, places, or events is entirely coincidental.

  Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Chapter 22

  Chapter 23

  Chapter 24

  Chapter 25

  Chapter 26

  Chapter 27

  Chapter 28

  Chapter 29

  Chapter 30

  Chapter 31

  Chapter 32

  Chapter 33

  Chapter 34

  Chapter 35

  Chapter 36

  Chapter 37

  Chapter 38

  Chapter 39

  Chapter 40

  Thank You

  1

  The gentle light of the morning sun touched Jess's cheeks and she imagined herself sleeping upon a bed of soft moss in a warm woodland glade, turning her head to gaze into the warm brown eyes and strong features of her beloved, their children happily playing amidst the protective gazes of the wolf pack that looked after them. Jess sighed with a contentment that bordered sheer bliss, she and her husband safe at last, having left the madness of politics and battle far behind.

  “You saved me, shieldsister!" Her husband laughed with his twinkling eyes. "I don't know how, my last memories as I took that lance being that I had failed you and you'd never forgive me. But here I am, hale and hearty once more, and only this silvery scar to remember the wound, looking for all the world like it had happened years ago.”

  Jess sighed and smiled, stroking her husband's scruffy cheeks with gentle hands. "What matters is that we freed ourselves from the madness of the war, my beloved Fenrir. What matters is that we are all safe." She leaned forward to kiss him, thinking fondly of how very much little Timothy took after him, their boy even then racing toward them, no doubt with tales of the brave battles he and his sisters had faced. She turned and smiled at their son's excited call even as the morning light blinded her, and she squinted, suddenly disoriented, blinking away odd bits of dream.

  Jess found herself blushing furiously, realizing to her horror that she had just kissed her shieldbrother, feeling strangely heartsick for some unfathomable loss she could not even describe.

  Malek chuckled softly. “I do believe you are still half asleep, my Jess.” His smile turned teasing “And I do note our present state of undress. Hmm. Perhaps I'd best not inquire too closely as to the nature of whatever healing rituals our greenmage made use of.”

  Jess flushed at her beloved friend's teasing laughter, throwing a pillow at him. "Nothing happened, you idiot!" Her bemused gaze then turned solemn and she began to shake, the battles of the day before hitting her all at once, as if she were living through them a second time, only now she had time to experience the terror and fear she should have felt before, had she not been madly fighting for her life.

  It was odd, she thought, to feel such horror now, shuddering at the visceral memory of her bloodied mace furiously pounding armored skulls, the web-like resistance of mail shirts abruptly giving with a burst of popped links as the javelins she had used like lances ripped through her enemy's chests under the force of Mercy's charges; the horrible gasps and shudders of men dying all around her, for all that she had reveled in every chaotic moment of that mad, terrible melee while it was happening, like a hellion born.

  She heard someone weeping then and was momentarily confused, until Malek's tender expression and gentle arms enfolding her made her realize the tears were her own. She collapsed in her shieldbrother's arms, grateful beyond words for his safe return, sobbing like a child.

  Feeling Malek's arms wrapped protectively around her, whispering teasing words into her hair, left her feeling as safe and warm as she had ever felt in the arms of another. It pained her to realize how much she truly adored this man she called brother, how much she depended upon him, how much she needed him by her side.

  “Feeling better?” Malek gently clasped her shoulders, easing back to gaze into her reddened eyes with a gentle smile. “Ah, the fierce and valiant Jessica de Calenbry. Crying like a frightened maiden. Come now, we must keep up our appearances, shieldsister! Whatever will the bards think?”

  Jess chuckled softly, gazing into her shieldbrother's teasing brown eyes. Her hand gently stroked his cheek, almost of its own accord. Malek flushed. “You know that's not a good idea, Jess,” he said, and Jess could almost swear his voice had grown husky. She tilted her head, suddenly wondering if perhaps his fierce devotion to his own sex wasn't quite as complete as he sometimes made out.

  Malek smirked. “And don't start entertaining any silly fantasies, either. I know how you are, Jess, always trying to make life fit the stories.”

  Jess flushed, then grinned. “And what's wrong with shaping life to fit the noblest of faerie tales, my brother-in-arms?”

  Malek chuckled softly. “Nothing, I suppose, save that life doesn't always work out that way. Besides,” He said after a moment's reflection. “Those stories end in rue just as often as they do in triumph. And I do believe I hear the rather insistent knocking of our companions on the other side of yonder door.” He blinked. “We're back in Raphael's chateau, I take it? These silk sheets are something else, and I'd swear that filigree is painted on with real gold. Talk about having coin to spare!”

  Jess smiled and nodded, happy to concede that Raphael's family chateau was nothing short of exquisite, having an eye to admire the quality of the finely polished hardwood furniture, artistry and attention to detail showing in every elegant curve and feature.

  With a gentle easing of her will the bedroom doors immediately sprung open, Jess suddenly recalling that she and her shieldbrother were completely naked as her friends stared at them both, momentarily nonplussed.

  It was Josie first who reacted, rushing into the room, momentarily ignoring a furiously blushing Jess, examining a softly protesting Malek who gently tried to push her away, but Josie would hear nothing of it.

  “By the gods above, it's a miracle." Josie gazed at Jess with an expression that was as close to awe as Jess had ever seen, even as Jess quickly slipped under the fine cotton sheets, realizing she had absolutely no idea where her clothes or armaments were. "Jess, how on earth did you do it?"

  Jess trembled even as she shrugged. “Honestly, Josie, I have no idea. The last thing I remember was utter terror at the thought, of, well, losing Malek. The next thing I know I'm lying here in bed and Malek, thank the gods, appears to be healthy once more.”

  Josie favored Jess with a measuring gaze that left her feeling oddly uncomfortable. “Honestly, Josie, I don't remember a thing,” Jess softly insisted.

  Josie frowned slightly, pulling back the covers despite Jess's gentle protests. “So you don't remember marking your body with runes
you carved into your own flesh?” she asked lightly, her clinician's fingers gently tracing silvery lines that had already faded to the faintest of scars.

  Jess felt her cheeks heat up under everyone's solemn stare. "No, Josie. As a matter of fact, it is only the scars your trembling finger traces even now that gives any credibility to your claim, for my memory surely does not." She continued looking down even when Josie stepped back, finding the curious serpentine flow of the faint silvery scarring upon her torso almost hypnotic.

  A gentle paw to her cheek distracted her. She turned to gaze into eyes of brilliant sapphire. “No need for obsessing over your every mark, like your sister before her vanity mirror.” Twilight flashed a toothy grin. “Malek is safe, and we have emerged triumphant from all obstacles once more. That is what matters. What's important now is that we make our way to the capital and assure that the chalice doesn't fall into the wrong hands.”

  Jess shivered in sudden recollection of that terrible etching she had seen, how real and terrible the Chalice of Absolution had looked, even in the artist's rendering.

  “But first, fishies!” Twilight purred even as Jess chuckled softly, scratching him between his ears. “It is always wise to feed the belly of heroic and noble familiars who serve their mistress so very well.”

  Jess looked up at an openly grinning Raphael, his gaze filled with unabashed gratitude and warmth. “I don't suppose there is any chance of some fish fillets?”

  Her friend chuckled indulgently. "For the hero of the Silver Circle, anything, Jess! Fortunately, a few of my more devoted servants felt the need to return after they found out we were still here, my loyal chef but one of them. I shall have her whip us up a feast of a brunch, just you wait!"

  Jess grinned happily even as her friend rang a conveniently placed silver bell.

  Josie, however, would not be distracted, her hand still gently tracing one of the odd scars upon Jess's side. Her gaze was solemn. “I think you did something dangerous, Jess, playing with forces few others would dare. There is a reason, even though few want to admit it, why certain arts were lost to time.”

  “Arts which arguably should never have been lost at all," commented a thoughtful looking Alex, his slender frame dressed in one of his customary sea-blue doublets, freshly cleaned, Jess could tell, for all that his face looked slightly gaunt, as did they all, she supposed, having traveled at a mad pace on humble forest fare for days before having to fight for their lives not once, but twice.

  “Alex, Jess is still naked!" a reproachful Jera hissed, gently flipping up the covers over a blushing Jess, even as an animated Alex spoke on.

  “Think on it, Josie. Jess here has arts we can barely guess at. A gift with all things that bud under the sun so strong that no door will open lest she wills it, and no spear or arrow would dare mark her flesh. Yet we have no paradigm to account for it, and for near the entirety of her time at Highrock, the professors of our arcane disciplines assumed she had no gift at all."

  He honored Jess with the formal nod of one scholar of the arcane to another. “And here she is, using arts we can only guess at, performing a ritual of healing beyond anything save what a full coven of healers could accomplish.”

  Josie grimaced. "She was gambling with forces none of us truly understand, Alex. Powers that could have warped her horribly. She skirted on the razor's edge, and only in those moments we were joined in pulling Malek from death's door did I even sense such terrible potential within her." An abrupt shake of her head. "Whatever sudden storm of potency she had grasped onto was perilous, Alex, and was contrary to every law of magic we have ever learned. You and I both know that, even if we don't know exactly what lies upon the other side of the chasm that separates our orderly talents from whatever else is out there. Frankly, I'm just glad our Jess isn't crackling with fae energies even now."

  Alex flashed Josie a curious grin before turning to Raphael. “I owe you an apology, my friend. You and Josie both. For I had underestimated just how perceptive and potent a wizard our dear Josie truly is.” He turned and bowed low before their young healer who, Jess could tell, had been about ready to fly into a tizzy at how discourteous Alex had been, speaking to Raphael as if Josie were but an extension, before paying her a courtesy normally reserved for the most revered of scholars. She blinked, shaking her head ruefully, obviously not knowing what to make of their eccentric friend.

  Jess smiled.

  Raphael nodded approvingly. “Precious and delicate is my beloved Josie, the jewel of my heart. Gentle as she is, those who underestimate her do themselves a great disservice. For she is a treasure beyond compare.”

  Josie blushed, gazing at her lover with naked adoration before shaking off her smile and gazing sternly at a bemused Jess once more. “Seriously, Jessie. I don't know what it is you did, and I thank all the gods that you saved our Malek, but you have to be careful! It would have done us no good if we had lost you both!”

  Jess hugged her close before Josie could start to cry.

  Malek, for his part, was gently holding a fiercely shaking Jacob, whispering tender words of endearment to their frightened friend.

  Jess could only imagine how Jacob would have felt if Malek had been truly lost to them, having so little else in his life to live for, as he had bitterly admitted when in his cups a time or two, all of them too gracious to ever confront him with the claim when he would awaken the next day bleary-eyed and snappish, only greeting him with a bowl of soup already laid out at his spot at the lords table, and perhaps a friendly smile.

  It was good, Jess thought, that whatever she had done had worked. Good for all their sakes.

  “Don't worry, Josie,” Jess soothed. “I promise not to gamble with forces I don't really understand, unless it's an emergency, of course.”

  Josie smiled ruefully. "And when is it ever not an emergency, dearest Jess? And really, who am I to blame you? Were you and Malek not who and what you are, the gods only know what would have happened to us all."

  Alex nodded. "You have that right, Josie. And perhaps that's the nature of Jess's magic. Whereas you, Jera, and I are able to manifest our gifts only with diligent practice and careful study, mayhap Jessica's talents are more in the realm of inherent gifts, used intuitively. Perhaps that path of power, dancing upon the razor's edge of reality itself, only manifests itself in direst circumstances." Alex shrugged. “Really, who knows? I'm just glad that whatever you did worked, Jess.”

  Jess nodded. “As am I, my friend, whatever it was. Now let's take Twilight's suggestion and go eat! He assures me lunch has just been plated and I, for one, am starving!” She grinned ruefully. “I feel like I haven't eaten for days!”

  Alex tilted his head, flashing her an enigmatic smile. "You don't know, then. Well, that's not a surprise, Jess. You and Malek were both locked away for the last three days. We could only assume that all was well, as your magics alone were keeping the door secured and, well, you understand."

  Jess nodded, knowing exactly what Alex was getting at. If she had perished, would the wood still hold firm? She suspected it might, at that.

  Jera smiled. "Lunch sounds wonderful. Now if everyone could please leave, I shall assure that Jess is properly attired for the meal."

  “And I'm wandering out of here in a bedspread," Malek joked, gently helped to his feet by his overly attentive lover, clucking away like a mother hen.

  “No worries, Malek,” Raphael soothed, gently leading Malek and Jacob both toward the doorway. “Come this way. I do believe I have some attire that will fit you quite well, and I took the liberty of having your gambeson cleaned and stitched up, good as new.” Malek smiled his appreciation as he was gently led off, Jera and Josie remaining, simultaneously helping Jess dress and peppering her with questions she couldn't begin to answer.

  At last Josie clucked and sighed, shaking her head even as she hugged a surprised Jess fiercely. "Oh, my Jess. I don't even know where to begin with you, I truly don't. The fire in your eyes when you enter your battlefrenzy
chills my very soul, yet the look of love you had for Malek in his time of peril was as pure and tender as any I have seen from a woman standing vigil over her mate."

  Josie's gaze turned solemn, stepping back, touching Jess's cheek. “And the terrible risk you took, channeling the gods alone know what, like a maiden gambling with the fates themselves for the soul of her beloved... truly, Jess, your devotion to Malek is as great as any wife to her husband.” Jess flushed, not knowing what to say, even as Jera quirked a smile.

  Jera gently stroked Jess's brow. “And those fools at the college who dismissed your talents, simply because you take to spellweaves like a fish to flight, are a pack of bloody idiots! Each and every one of them. All they had to do was ask Lady Vaila, who has more time for you than even her most favored students, or stop to wonder why our modest rooftop garden that could barely sustain the Healers Wing before you came now has herbs of such excess and potency that the Royal Family itself expressed an interest in a steady supply of Collegium herbs! Herbs that completely outmatch the sad excuses for plants Lady Vaila's students tend to in the garden below." Jera smiled as she stepped back, giving an approving nod after adjusting the collar of Jess's attire.

  “You truly do look splendid in uniform, Jess. The way the tunic and tights hug your frame, you could start an entirely new trend, if more girls were as bold and brave as you!” Jera winked, her voice falling to a teasing whisper. “If Malek were any kind of man at all, he would make you his, this very night!” Jess felt her cheeks blaze at her friend's soft chuckle.