Nephilim Strain (eBook)

E.M. Allen (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2023 | 1. Auflage
246 Seiten
Bookbaby (Verlag)
979-8-3509-0242-6 (ISBN)

Infos

In the gripping novel, The Nephilim Strain, ancient powers collide as a deadly threat descends upon St. Louis. When a sinister vampire infiltrates the city, The Agents of Nightwatch must forge an uneasy alliance with The Celestial Order to thwart the bloodthirsty killer before it's too late.

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In the riveting sequel to The Hellfire Brats, The Nephilim Strain plunges readers back into a world teeming with supernatural intrigue and danger. When a gruesome murder in St. Louis points to the work of a bloodthirsty vampire, Celestial Knights Eliza Alcius and Amelia Petrochilos are quick to join the hunt, determined to stop the killer before they strike again. Meanwhile, Nightwatch Agents Donald "e;Dodger"e; Rogers and Oliver Turner continue Oliver's training, as he struggles to gain control over his nephilim transformation. Joined by friends Brittany Rembrandt and Rachel Rune, they soon find themselves entwined in the unfolding mystery. As Oliver encounters Vincent Dakane and Morgan Ravencroft-two nephilim who narrowly escaped the clutches of the sinister vampire Corlarva-things take a personal turn. Nightwatch and The Celestial Order must join forces to prevent Corlarva from abducting Oliver and the other nephilim, all in pursuit of the enigmatic Nephilim Strain. The Nephilim Strain masterfully weaves a tale of supernatural suspense, as ancient powers and modern heroes clash in a race against time. Delve into this thrilling adventure and witness the breathtaking battle between good and evil.

Textauszug

Chapter 2

Oliver at the Gym

Fifteen-year-old Oliver Turner had only been training as a mage for five months. The fruits of his labor had yet to ripen but the signs of a fit body were starting to manifest. He had read online that there were three ways for a mage to train and that each method corresponded with one of the tria-ethos. The logic behind this seemed sound.

The tria-ethos: sensus, corporis and animus, the three types of augmentation that marked the progress of a mage. The methods of training included rigorous academic study, physical workouts and spiritual reflection. Know oneself, know the world and become strong.

Dodger knew better than to draw causation where there was correlation. All three actions did make mages stronger but it did not necessarily correspond with the tria-ethos. Oliver himself was living proof. His first few months were spent almost entirely on physical training and breaking the mental boundaries between him and his ability to do magic. Yet, his animus—that which allegedly corresponded to spiritual reflection—was the first of the tria-ethos to manifest. And it did so without him even knowing what he really was.

Nephilim. That word still felt like pop rocks on his tongue. His curiosity had led him down numerous rabbit holes all of which became increasingly bizarre and conspiratorial. He decided to heed his boss’s advice and take things slowly. What is a nephilim? Well, it’s what he was and so that was a question he would have to figure out himself.

That’s what brought him to the gym. He was not with Dodger. Instead, he was with the sisters Rachel Rune and Brittany Rembrandt. Both girls had a history of athletics and had volunteered their time to help Oliver train his body. Above all else, Oliver needed his corporis.

He had nearly died at the hands of Sebastian Crane due to his lack of that physical defense. He also had to fear that nephilim form. He had been warned that transforming again without a corporis could shorten his life and doing so a third time could claim it. Corporis was the aspect of the physical body. It’s what protected mages from all manner of magic, resisted the power of others, and allowed them to transform without causing permanent damage.

“See something you like?” Rachel teased. Both she and her older sister were wearing sports clothes that exposed their midriffs. Rachel was in the same class as Oliver. Brittany was two years older. Rachel had short dark hair with doe-brown eyes while Brittany had a mess of long blonde locks and soft blue eyes. The two athletes stood side by side, looking down on Oliver as he sat on a bench, fighting back the blush in his cheeks.

“Eyes are up here buddy.” Brittany diverted his attention away from Rachel and onto herself. “I told Dodger I’d help you get into fighting shape but you’re a lost cause if you gawk and freeze anytime there’s a cute athletic girl around.”

“I’m not gawking.” Oliver denied the accusation and rose to his feet. “It’s just that your skin looks a little red Rachel.”

“Oh.” Rachel looked at her arm and stomach. Sure enough there was an irritable redness to her usually pale complexion that had gone unnoticed.

Brittany and Oliver strapped on boxing gloves and entered the sparring ring. The older girl had been interested in martial arts ever since she was a kid. Boxing was her personal favorite and she had even won a few competitions in her day.

“Try not to hurt him.” Rachel said as she stood in Oliver’s corner.

“I’m wearing thick gloves for a reason.” Brittany demonstrated her point by knocking the gloves against each other with a soft whoomph sound.

“I’ll be fine Rachel. She’s only a little bigger than me, I’m pretty sure I can take her anyway.”

“Boy, do not underestimate me.” Brittany warned.

“Oliver, she might not be as good as Dodger but she can do some magic.” Rachel said. “She’s got the skills required to be a knight.”

“Then why isn’t she?” Oliver asked.

“I have my reasons.” Brittany said. “Land a blow on me and I might tell you.”

“Deal!” Oliver said. “Fair warning though, I don’t have the best grasp on my power. I might end up hurting you.”

“Cockiness doesn’t suit you.” Rachel sighed.

The two blondes sized each other up. Brittany was five-foot-eight-inches making her two inches taller than Oliver. More importantly, she was almost all muscle while Oliver was still somewhat scraggly.

“Your footwork isn’t bad.” Brittany complimented. “At least Dodger taught you how to throw a proper punch.”

“It’s all about leverage right?” Oliver said.

With a confident smirk he threw the first punch. His jab whiffed right past her head and the next thing he knew he was seeing stars. The blow rang in his ears as his legs loosened. His body hit the mat with a muffled thud. He thought he had gotten tougher after his ordeals but alas, Brittany hit as hard as anything Oliver had gone up against.

“You have no idea.” Brittany said as she put her hands on her hips and loomed over him. “This isn’t a fight, it’s a beat down. Until you can manifest your corporis you’re going to be in a lot of pain.”

“That wasn’t too bad.” Oliver said as he got back to his feet.

“Thank the gloves. Had I really hit you, you’d be out the rest of the night.” Brittany taunted.

“Right. You have a corporis. Tell me, is there anyone else at our school who’s secretly a mage?” Oliver’s question was followed by a series of body blows.

“Ten percent of the population has the potential so there’s bound to be a few even I don’t know about. As for ones to worry about, there’s only Eliza, Amelia and Dodger. Rachel and I aren’t much compared to them.”

She beat Oliver like a drum while he mulled over that statistical fact. When she finally relented, Oliver looked at Rachel in disbelief. The weight of what she said finally registered when his ears stopped ringing. Rachel was the first person he had met upon arriving in Shadowbrooke at the end of the past summer. He had spent almost as much time with her as he had Dodger yet he had never heard anything about her being a mage.

“Brittany.” Rachel grumbled.

“When were you going to tell me?” Oliver asked.

“I’ve only dabbled!” Rachel defended her lack of transparency. “I already told you I have no interest in fighting. I want to be a doctor. Having some knowledge of magic helps with that.”

“Don’t think anything of it.” Brittany said. “There’s a lot you don’t know and none of us are obligated to tell you our life story.”

The niceties ended there. Oliver had already taken his first steps into the wider world and just when he thought he understood how deep that world was, it was bound to get deeper. In the entire hour he sparred with Brittany Rembrandt, he did not land a single blow. She did not let her guard down. If it had been a no-holds-barred fight Oliver may have stood a better chance. If all things were permitted he could have jumped back and lit up the whole gym with concentrated bolts of mana. It might not have done him much good, but it’d have been better than being used as a punching bag. This was her arena, her element, she had been boxing most of her life and what little magic she knew heightened those sharpened skills. Meanwhile Oliver was only useful when it came to blasting enemies at range with his animus.

After beating him senseless, Brittany left him to Rachel. The younger girl iced the bruises developing on his arms. He was stewing in bitter defeat. Meanwhile, Rachel was impressed he even lasted as long as he did.

“You know how the old saying goes. You learn more from defeat than victory.” Rachel said.

“I thought I’d gotten my butt kicked plenty.” Oliver said. “I was hoping to tag her once at least.”

“You telegraph your moves too much.” Brittany said. “You’ve built up muscle but that’s not going to do any good if you can’t hit your opponent.”

Before she could carry on, the door to the gym burst open. Dodger’s arrival brought the downtime to a close. He was also beaming with excitement. Dodger was a demoran who had grown up around humans and was the same age as Brittany. He stood six feet in height and his head was adorned with curly brown hair. Not only was he a skilled mage in his own right, but like Oliver, he was an agent of that most elusive of crime fighters, Sir Nightwatch.

“Guess who just scored a pair of tickets to tonight’s hockey game.” Dodger said.

“How can you think of such things at a time like this?” Oliver asked.

“Don’t be so sour. Mages need hobbies too.” Dodger said. “Besides, you’re going with me.”

“What?” Brittany protested.

“Man, nothing but bad moods here.” Dodger said.

“You promised that you’d take...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 10.7.2023
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Romane / Erzählungen
• ISBN-13: 979-8-3509-0242-6 / 9798350902426