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It isn't much of a choice.
Ærenden is a land more beautiful and sinister than Meaghan could have ever imagined. Vines attack. Monkeys freeze their victims with a glare. Soldiers create bombs from the air. Even Meaghan's newly discovered empath power turns into a danger she cannot control.
But control becomes the least of her worries when she learns the truth behind the kingdom's fifteen-year civil war--a long-buried secret that could cost Meaghan her life.
Read an Excerpt from Aerenden: The Child Returns
After they stopped for a lunch of leftovers, they entered a cavern so large Meaghan could not see the ceiling. An eerie glow emanated from above, bathing the room in faint light. To their right, a cave-in blocked their path. To the left, a pebble-laden shoreline descended into the blue-black waters of a lake. The lake stretched out in front of them, its far shores obscured by dark and distance. Fish leaped from the water and dove back under, rippling concentric circles in their wake. Several bubbles danced in succession along the surface. Then the largest one drifted toward the shore.
Cal moved in front of Meaghan. Nick stepped forward to do the same. A line of spikes broke the water from the center of the ripple and a head emerged. Two round, milky orbs came next, protruding from a bulbous face covered in scales. Metallic lids descended over the orbs several times in quick succession, and Meaghan realized the creature was blinking. A serpentine tongue flicked from its gaping mouth as it rotated its orbs to focus on Cal, then it climbed onto the shore. Water cascaded off its toad-like body and elephantine legs. Although it stood the height of a large dog, it held twice the mass of a canine. It pawed webbed feet into the ground, then stilled.
“What is that thing?” Nick asked.
“Got me,” Cal said. “There are a lot of weird beasts down here. Keep your eyes on it. I’ll try to clear the path.”
Cal managed only a few steps before the creature let out a pig-like squeal and charged, its massive legs spraying rocks behind it. It circled them, then grunted and lowered its head, pointing its sharp spikes at Nick’s stomach. Cal’s torch met its backside. The animal’s piercing scream echoed painfully in Meaghan’s ears as it rounded on Cal.
Cal stepped back. The beast lunged forward, and Cal swept his torch forward, fending off the attack with a trail of fire.
“Go,” Cal commanded. “I’ll catch up.”
Cal waved a hand at the cave-in. The earth rumbled. Boulders rolled away from the path to reveal a small opening, and Nick pulled Meaghan onto the pathway, obeying Cal’s instruction. Rocks slipped beneath Meaghan’s feat as she scrambled to keep up with Nick, then she froze and tore her arm from Nick’s grasp. The steady fear she had sensed from Cal changed to agonizing pain, stealing her breath, and she shook off the sensation, racing back down the path to the cavern before another shock of pain clenched her stomach.
Cal lay sprawled out on the ground, his torch blazing out of reach. The creature had pinned his shoulders with its massive front legs. It snapped at him, growling, and Meaghan rushed forward, scooping up Cal’s torch along the way. She slashed the torch in front of her like a sword, grazing the creature’s side.
The animal shrieked and reared up on its hind legs. Meaghan dove for it, knocking its massive body off Cal, then she and the creature rolled down the embankment, propelled by the force of their combined weight. Pebbles scraped Meaghan’s skin. Rocks bruised her arms, but nothing slowed her path as she careened toward the lake.
At the shoreline, her shin slammed into a boulder, snapping the bone. Agony forced a scream through her lips. Water filled her mouth. She choked on it, then plunged into an inky-black haze. The lake swallowed her, muting her hearing and dulling her eyesight. Beside her, a mass plunged through the semi-darkness, sending bubbles cascading toward the surface.
About the Author:
Kristen spent her childhood at the feet of an Irish storytelling grandfather, learning to blend fact with fiction and imagination with reality. She lived within the realms of the tales that captivated her, breathing life into characters and crafting stories even before she could read. Those stories have since turned into over a hundred poems, short stories, and nine manuscripts in both the Young Adult and Adult genres. Currently, Kristen is writing from various coffee shops and public spaces in the suburbs of Washington D.C.
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