Ascension of the fallen.., p.1
Ascension of the Fallen: Redemption Duology: Book 2, page 1
Contents
Title Page
Copyright
Dedication
Blank Page
Blank Page-1
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Blank Page-2
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Chapter Eighteen
Chapter Nineteen
Chapter Twenty
Chapter Twenty-One
Chapter Twenty-Two
Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Four
Chapter Twenty-Five
Chapter Twenty-Six
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Chapter Thirty
Chapter Thirty-One
Chapter Thirty-Two
Chapter Thirty-Three
Chapter Thirty-Four
Chapter Thirty-Five
Chapter Thirty-Six
Chapter Thirty-Seven
Ascension of the Fallen
W. Sherry
Copyright © 2023 W. Sherry
All rights reserved.
ISBN: 9798849184616
Imprint: Independently published
Dedicated to;
My wife, Sarah and by boys, Sawyer and Boone
To all those who helped me in the process.
The adventure so far:
Will, born into a poor blacksmithing village, high on the Mount of Fallow discovers he is not bound to the mountain as his forebears have been. Born without the magical constraints placed on his peoples by the evil emperor, he fled the mountain in an effort to free his people. Harried by the emperor's forces he found another isolated people called the Dwellers living in the Dark Forest. While there had never been peace between the empire and Dwellers, the forest had not been breached. This was until Will entered. While there he met Sihu who chose to accompany him on his travels to rescue the Eternal King held prisoner by the emperor, hoping to find a way to free his people.
After leaving the forest they journeyed to meet the King, a man named Reigns joined them, sent by the King who was communicating with the travelers through dreams. Will discovered he was one of the ancient races of Valkyns, a flying being with ability to bend and control the magic that permeates the world, though the average person cannot see it. After meeting the King and learning how to free his people Reigns stabbed Sihu. Will flew her to safety. The Empire attacked the Forest and Dwellers retreated to Mount of Fallow helping liberated Will’s village. Will met an individual called the Prorok accompanied Will on his journey from the Dark Forest to the Mount of Fallow, though he claimed no allegiance to the King or Emperor, but seemed to answers to his magical abilities.
The cost was the burning of the Dark Forest and group of Dwellers left behind to draw the empire's forces away from the retreating Dwllers. As Will broke the magical bonds that held his people, the King burst free from the mountain. Through dreams the King informed Will he had many people place throughout the empire to further his rebellion, including the betrayer Reigns who was to be a double agent.
The Empire now stands with most of the lower classes unaware of the Rebellion, living oppressed lives, ruled by the Emperor and his evil Valkyns known the Illkyn.
CHAPTER ONE
SOMEM STOOD AT the bow of his family's fishing vessel. In truth, the bow was more of a ramp that extended well past the front of the boat that he would launch himself off of toward his prey. The waves rocked the boat as the salty spray of the sea clung to his bronze skin creating a glisten. He brushed his tangled black dreadlocks over his shoulder as he spotted his quarry.
“Starboard, fifty paces out!” he shouted over his shoulder.
The boat lurched as the sail moved to catch the wind and drive the boat toward the shark hunting the reef close by. Splashing sounded as the oars hit the ocean and Somem’s brothers and cousin drove the wooden vessel even quicker. Somem moved close to the base of the ramp as he continued to shout directions to his father, the rudder man. Adrenaline coursed through him. If he was successful, the family would have food for weeks, and teeth and bone for trade. He tightened his lefthand grip on his bronze-headed trident, a family heirloom. Busy behind his cousin, Seltek, he checked the knot attaching the trident to the coil he held in his hand.
“Ten away!” Somem shouted.
The entire crew began counting down. “Sefulu… iva… valu...” Somem made sure his footing was sturdy at the base of the ramp by digging the balls of his feet into the old deck. The crew moved to the starboard side to see if they would be rewarded.“Fitu…ono…lima… fā…" At fā, Somem began his run forward to the end of the ramp, cocking his arm, positioning the trident as he had many times before. "Tolu… lua…" Somem approached the end. "Tasi!" Somem dove off the end of the ramp directing his body slightly to the left of the unsuspecting shark.
Somem, in midair above the shark, screamed and threw with all his might, knowing that if he did not get a clean hit, the shark would turn on him the moment he struck the water. The trident struck the shark and bobbed as it stuck out from the leathery flesh. Somem struck the water. As soon as he was able, he drew his ankle knife, preparing for a charge from the shark. As he surfaced and blinked the salty water from his eyes, he saw the water all around him turning a deep shade of crimson. Above him, another man flew, spearing the shark for a second time, harpooning and securing a second rope into the beast. A hoorah! came from the ship when Somem surfaced.
Somem quickly found a rope in his hands, and he was pulled aboard.
He was congratulated by many. "Well done, spearman." And, "Great job, Som!"
The small crew of fifteen men worked to secure the shark to the side of their small skiff and head to shore to butcher and divide the spoils of their hunt.
On the beach, many came to see the processing of the Ameem family's rare harvest. Children decorated the various rocks running the coast of the seaside city of Chadena. Fishing boats coming back from a day's work took an extra pass. Other families looked on, envious of the prized haul. The Ameem family divided the meat and teeth up between each man according to his position on the boat. As spearman, Somem received the largest share. Somem did not have a wife or children and was, at eighteen, by far the youngest spearman in the city. He typically gave any excess food he had to needy family members or to the street orphans, of whom there was no shortage in Chadena.
As Seltek was portioning out the meat, a masked man dressed in all black robes walked toward them. The mask was silver with exaggerated eyes and cheeks, and a fang-ridden smile. He walked with a cane but did not seem to have a limp. His robes were made of a light material that blew in the wind. Somem approached the skulking figure.
“What can we do for you, priest?” Somem spat the word at the imposing presence.
The figure stood before Somem, whose wiry frame towered over him.
“Well, I’m here to collect the temple’s tax of course.” The voice was muffled by the mask, but laden with spite for the fishermen.
“We pay our taxes every month.”
"Our gracious lord and overseer, Valkyn Septin, heard about your family's luck in ending a shark, and desires to partake of the bounty of the sea. If it is a problem, young one, we can involve the city guard."
All work had stopped and everyone was staring at the exchange.
“Fine. What does our so-gracious overlord desire from our harvest?”
The priest made a show of inspecting the fifteen piles of almost-equal size.
“Ah, yes. Well, I don’t think we will need more than… seven of these shares. Oh, and if you don’t mind, Valkyn Septin would appreciate you delivering it to the temple.”
“Seven!” Somem shouted. “That is nearly half of our kill. Who do you think you are, you pompous little rat!”
Smack! The priest hit Somem across the face with his cane. Somem was back on his feet in a second and moving toward the priest when Seltek tackled him.
“You can’t attack a priest, Somem! They will kill you if you so much as trip him.” Seltek turned his attention to the priest. “Priest, we will deliver what you request. Now, please, be on your way.”
The priest walked over to Somem, who was laid out on his back catching his breath, a large welt beginning to swell across his face.
"Make sure this is one of the ones who will deliver the taxes. It would do him well to remember who is really in charge here." The priest raised his leg as if to turn around, but instead brought his booted foot down, hard, onto Somem's face. There was an audible crack as Somem’s nose broke, and he writhed around in pain. The priest turned and walked away.
By the time his eyes cleared enough to see, the priest was a speck far off on the beach.
"I'll kill that priest!" Somem shouted to those who had surrounded him.
“You will do no such thing!” his father said.
“Father, how can you say that? Look what he’s done to me!”
“He did exactly what the temple has alway
“It is not my temper that needs to be taken care of, it is the temple.”
Seltek jumped in, waving the crowd away. "Nothing to see here folks. My cousin just had a couple of hits to the head, and he is babbling nonsense.”
The crowd dissipated.
"What do you think you are doing, Somem? To talk against the temple or Empire is blasphemy and punishable by death. Maybe the priest was right, you do need to recognize your place. I'm going to go re-distribute the catch."
Somem's father and Seltek left him to wallow in his new injuries and gain his composure. Seltek divided the piles into moderately smaller piles. While the crew had looked forward to a few days’ break, they would now have none. And to make matters worse, they wondered whether their spearman would be well enough to hunt on the morrow.
Somem and Seltek lugged the meat to the temple which resided at the highest point in the city. A hundred steps led to the pillars that surrounded the entrance. Above the base layer, there was a second floor with a large balcony that the Valkyn, and on special occasions the Emperor, would stand and pass judgement on those below them.
Somem had long avoided coming to the temple. In fact, most of the city’s inhabitants, though born into membership to the Cult of Acros, did not observe their imposed religion. The only time the city’s inhabitants, besides the anonymous priests, came to the temple was to pay their imperial taxes which were then sent to the capital.
Flies buzzed around the two as they carried the meat for quite some time. They climbed the last few steps and entered the temple. The interior was a large hall with a golden statue of the Emperor, veiled by his cloak, with the Valkyns holding him up. At the base was a large golden altar with a plate. Around the halls lampstands shined bright. The cousins approached the plate and placed the meat. A priest came over and recorded their names and their “donation” to the Valkyns. Despite Seltek's misgivings about Somem in the temple, they left without incident.
Somem had not said anything to his cousin since the encounter with the priest on the beach. On their way back to their family's small house on the edge of the city, he ventured into conversation despite the swelling on his face.
“I’m sorry, Seltek. I didn’t mean to cause problems.”
“Yes, you did, Somem. You always want to cause problems with the temple. That is why your father never sends you with the taxes.”
“Well, I didn’t mean to cost us so much. If I wouldn’t have said anything, they might not have taken half of our haul.”
“I believe you. You’re always generous with your portions, more so than the temple ever is, but you have to learn your place, Somem. You can’t fight them. If you do, then we all suffer. They hold all of the power, and we hold none.”
"So, what? We are to be satisfied with the scraps of our hard labor? That is not right, Seltek, and you know it."
“It doesn’t matter what is right and what is wrong, we can’t do anything to change our situation. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you will find contentment at our lot in life.”
“Contentment?” Somem was incredulous. “I should be content scraping by?”
"Yes, Somem, you should, and we shouldn't discuss this any longer. You know as well as I do that the Empire has spies everywhere, trying to find traitors to make examples of. You almost got yourself killed. We don't even know who the priests are. There might even be some in our own family. You must stop your vendetta against the Empire, or they will not only kill you, but they will destroy our family."
Somem did not speak to his cousin for the rest of their journey home.
As Somem drifted off to sleep that night, a strange dream came to him. A king was calling, telling him to go to a mountain city in the north, called Petronev, to rescue some highborn girl. Somem woke and fell back asleep, but the dream kept coming back. The message was always the same: "Somem, you are made for more. Go to Petronev. Rescue the countess's niece. She is waiting for you."
CHAPTER TWO
A MAN SCREAMED as he was dragged from the Hall of Judgement. Many of the bystanders snickered at the disgraced former official whose destiny was now sealed. Seated on a pedestal at the head of the room was the Count of Petronev, Salced the Cruel. The room was organized to allow many of the affluent officials and the wealthy members of the city to sit and watch the proceedings. It was split in two, with scattered couches and chairs on either side for the spectators and a wide aisle running down the middle. At one end was the entrance and exit, on the other was Salced's Judgement Seat. The events of judgement days, every sixth day, was the game of the affluent of Petronev. It allowed those who wished to avoid the Pit, and its blood-thirsty devotees, a modicum of decorum.
The sport of the well-off of Petronev was that of influence. Before the accused was brought into the Hall of Judgment for the trial, a brief of their crimes was read to the gathered crowd, including the count. Then a bookie went around and took the audience's bets on whether the person was guilty or not, and what their sentence would be. If the person was sentenced to the Pit, additional bets could be placed on the length of their survival.
After the original bets were placed, the accused were brought in and given the opportunity to provide a defense for themselves, or one of those in attendance could provide a defense. Since no other representation was available to the accused, families would often pay those of Salced's Court, as it was known, to stand in defense of their families. This helped not only increase the wealth of the courtiers but strengthened their support for Salced. After the accused's defense was presented, there would be no judgement until the following judgement day, six days later. During the six days, those of the court would attempt to bribe and gain Salced's favor for the ruling they desired. While one could appeal the sentencing to the Valkyn lord who was worshipped at the city temple, it would mean immediate expulsion from Salced's Court, and that person would likely end up there for sentencing in the near future.
The man screaming and being dragged out of the hall was one such man. He had, against advice, sought a hearing with the Lord Valkyn. His appeal for a man wrongly sentenced to the Pit for thievery ended in his conviction for blasphemy against the Empire, though no verifiable witnesses could be presented. The once member of the court was sentenced to the Pit. No bet was made in favor of his release, or any other sentence; all knew he was a lost cause. Only three of the members of the court bet on him lasting past his first trial in the Pit. Salced was sure to set him against the fiercest competitors or animals.
None of the man's former peers looked sad or fazed by the spectacle or his sentence. To them, it was business as usual. All sat down and eagerly listened to the bookie's description of the next case.
All but one. A woman, who had tears streaking her makeup, cried silently as she slipped through one of the room’s hidden exits near a back corner of the hall.
Adessai ran into her room and slammed the door. She looked in the mirror and did not recognize the tear-streaked face before her. Crying was completely out of the ordinary for her, beneath her. She was not one of the pretentious prissies of the upper class who were so sensitive at every insult or shame. She was above using crying for the purpose of manipulation. She had her brains and wit for that. The tears she shed were those of grief. She had just witnessed the failure of all her best-laid plans. The man, Jistone, was sentenced to the Pit because of her. She had convinced him to appeal to the Valkyn lord. In truth, she had not known him well or much about him besides the fact that he was a good man. A good man in a place where there were already too few good men. Adessai did not cry for Jistone, though, even if it was her fault that he was to die. He was dying for something worth dying for. Truth. He had done the right thing and because of it, he would suffer the martyrdom of failed justice. She cried for the loss of the cause, for losing one of the few people who might actually be able to make life better for those in the city of Petronev and for herself.
Adessai moved a basin of water to the stand in front of her mirror and began to wash the makeup from her face. After washing her face, she let her hair down out of the tight bun it had been pulled up into. Staring at her reflection, she knew she didn't belong in the circles of power within Petronev. She hated wearing the thick, pasty makeup, and the uncomfortable fashions and styles. She liked her light complexion and preferred to let her red curls fall where they liked, or if it was to be up, only tamed by a ponytail. Her green eyes, which often brought suspicion from those who did not know her, were her most striking feature. She stood and put on her evening gown, which had to be custom made to fit her tall, muscular build. Her father, who would have preferred her to be a tan, gaunt noodle so he could marry her off quickly, had ordered that all of her court dresses be made long-sleeved and vertically striped. She did not care though. Adessai's muscles were the result of her regularly training with the sword and her custom of sneaking around the keep and city at night, both habits of which her family was unaware.
