A Tale of Water (eBook)

A guarded heart is a lost cause

Nathaniel Freeman (Autor)

eBook Download: EPUB

2025 | 1. Auflage
245 Seiten
Publishdrive (Verlag)
978-0-00-103552-2 (ISBN)

Infos

Deception is a weapon. And she's about to wield it.

In a realm where ancient powers sleep beneath the waves, a young woman hides a gift the world would kill to control. Raised in silence and shadows, Eliza has lived her life behind a mask-trained to fear her abilities and bury her past.

But when an empire's war spills into her village, Eliza is thrust into a deadly game of politics, prophecy, and power. She must navigate a crumbling kingdom ruled by secrets, where every ally has an agenda and every truth is wrapped in lies.

At the heart of it all stands a broken throne-and two paths: one leads to freedom, the other to destruction.

And the gods are watching.

A Tale of Water is a spellbinding dark fantasy debut about loyalty, legacy, and the price of becoming who you were meant to be. If you love atmospheric world-building, masked heroines, and slow-burning magic, step into the flood.

Textauszug

Chapter 6: Never meet your Hero

 

She led him to the far outskirts of the village, westwards, in the opposite direction he had fought the day before. She avoided any unnecessary attention from the busy villagers by leading him the long way around instead of through the village. Why the detour? he questioned, but she wasn't in a listening mood. They weaved their way through a forest of pine trees, then followed a descending path which led to a large open field that blossomed with a carpet of gold-colored flowers.

A cool gentle breeze greeted them as they came into the clearing; the scent of flora was mesmerizing. The field of gold stretched to their left and their right. Across the field of gold lies a lake, its waters quiet and still. All around the clearing stood a wall of pine trees, even to the far side of the lake.

Stunned by the munificent beauty of nature that spreads before him, he stood still in awe—at a loss for words. He admired in silence and wonder the captivating beauty of nature that remains unmatched through all ages.

"The name of our village is—"

"Pinewood," he completed. "And this... This is the Crystal Lake," he added with accruing enthusiasm. She frowned, but nature’s unmatched beauty had robbed her of his attention.

"I can see why you remained silent on our way here, despite my insistence."

"Actually, I wanted to impress you a little, but you ruined the surprise;" she sounded grumpy.

He gave a light laugh. "Everyone knows the Crystal Lake or at least heard about it—they say the water grants eternal life, if you believe the rumors."

"But it seems you're the former. Have you been here before?" She inquired. He gave no answer; his eyes continued to admire the view.

"So, this is where you come to think?" He asked her.

"This is where I come to get away from it all," she said. "It's peaceful, and no one cares to visit because it's a sacred place and everyone's scared of trespassing." She folds her arms.

"Everyone except you," he said with curious look. She lifted her countenance to his, then broke the connection with a scoff.

"Let's find us some shade," he said.

He searched around and his eyes found a single tree that strayed away from the herd. It stood alone to their right upon a rising earth. He turned and headed towards it. Eliza followed and eventually took the lead. The two walked gently amongst the bed of golden flowers in full bloom. Eliza gently crooned a lullaby; he leaned forward, hoping that he was familiar with the tune. Unfortunately, he wasn't.

He sat himself to rest beneath the shade of the young lonely acacia, here he collected his thoughts. The Crystal Lake did not disappoint; the scenery was quite magical, a medication for a wounded soul. Eliza was reluctant to indulge his need for a brief knowledge about the lake. Her words would serve as a distraction before he can finally decide his next course of action. And just as expected, she wasn't shy about flaunting her knowledge on the subject. The Crystal Lake.

*

A rustling noise from the woods caught his attention; Eliza who continued to lecture him, failed to notice.

"Eliza! Eliza!" A boy came running.

The sudden piercing call of her name startled her.

"Eliza! Are you here?" The boy called with a sharp voice.

Eliza took a quick turn, her eyes glimpsed the boy; "Ollie?!" she said with surprise.

Ollie ran and stood before her, huffing and puffing. She knelt to compensate his height, laid a hand on his shoulder, and examined his troubled face.

"What's it?! What's happening?" She inquired.

The boy was still trying to get his breathing under control. The young lad must have run without stopping, she thought. The Crystal Lake wasn't more than a kilometer, but for a chubby Ollie who ran on stubby legs, it seemed much further than that to him.

"The king's riders," he finally said between exhausted breaths. "They're in the village, looking for you." Her pupils widened.

"Something wrong?"

"N - nothing." She replied.

Ollie, now in full control of himself, stretched his neck to see the source of the voice behind Eliza.

The boy gave a drawling gasp; the male specimen seated behind the annoying Eliza impressed him. His face, chiseled and mature. The man's well-toned, hairy forearms, stretched out of the rolled-up sleeves of the worn-out tunic he was wearing. Each arm rested upon a knee of his crossed powerful legs—not that the boy could see anything beyond the man's pale green pants. He has a well-trimmed beard and a battle scar on his left cheek. Ollie couldn't hide how impressed he was. This is probably the manliest man I've seen! He thought to himself.

"Who's that? Is he a friend? What's his name?" Ollie asked all at once. He peered closer at him, then concluded; "He looks dangerous." The sarcasm in his voice, emphatic.

Eliza glanced over her shoulder and wondered how she would answer the boy. The name of this stranger is unknown to her. His origins and purpose, she hasn't the slightest idea. She never cared to ask because she’s taken a liking to him.

Turning to the staring Ollie, she eased him with a smile. "He's... a friend," she drawled. Ollie's face smeared with doubt.

"A friend? You have a man... friend?!" He sounded incredulous.

The silent stranger could not believe what he was hearing either.

Eliza knew that the inquisitive Ollie would torment her with questions she had no answers to. She rose to her feet and tried to alter the conversation. "This isn't someone we should worry about. Leave him for now—let's head home. You did say the king's men were looking for me, right?” Ollie nods in response.

“Let's get going then," she persuaded.

It would have ended there, but no... Ollie no longer had any interest in returning home; "I staying with him," he replied. He slipped past her and ran towards the safety of the stranger who sat and watched their drama in silence.

Eliza stretched to full height; frills of temper knitted on her forehead. "I said let's go!" She snapped.

Her words fell on deaf ears. Ollie proved to be just as stubborn as she was. She needed more time to break his adamant curiosity, but she was lacking in that regard; the king's riders await. Saying nothing more, she left Ollie to his devices and departed, not before giving the boy a stony gaze that hinted the misfortune that might befall him later.

"Are you sure you're going to be ok? She didn't look happy."

Ollie blew a raspberry; "Nah, she wouldn't do a thing. She mouths off like crazy, but when there's danger—she's no problem. Besides, she owes me a bi...g favor." The boy said confidently.

Ollie’s word intrigued him.

"What do you know about Eliza;" the man asked, probably without thinking. Ollie's right brow climbed in suspicion. He cocked his head sideways, examining the subject before him with big, round, inquisitive blue eyes.

"Hmm... You don't look like a bad person, so I'll tell ya.” He said after a drawn silence.

Still on his feet, Ollie folds his arms and faced the direction Eliza had just followed. He gave a succinct account on the subject, his voice ladened with low zest as he spoke.

"Well, me pa and ma said that Aunt Eliza's family were the first to settle here in Pinewood," Ollie began. His audience of one listened closely.

He told about Eliza's love for literature, her weird trait of walking barefoot, her strict nature which he found annoying, her position as the third daughter in a family of five, and also, her position as the last child of the family. Their family apparently governs the village, which explains why their house stood out amongst the others. "Her siblings are gone; two of her brothers died last winter during the king's invasion of the Southlands. Her sisters live in the capital, they're working in the palace, they rarely come visit." Ollie narrated.

"So, she stays alone?"

"No! she stays with her ma," Ollie interjects. "Her pa is currently away, but will return soon—or so they say."

For a boy who was approximately between the ages of ten and eleven, he sure knows a lot, the man thought.

Tired of speaking on the subject that is Eliza, Ollie moved and sat on the stranger's right side. "So," he continued, "What do they call you?" He asked with a grin.

The man stroked his chin gently and lifted his eyes to the slow sailing clouds. Like a philosopher in deep meditation, he remained silent. Ollie wondered how difficult it was for someone to recall his own name.

With a gaunt expression—finally breaking the suspense, he declared; "Austin. That's my name."

Ollie paused and stared at him intently; his stretched face clearly labeled his disappointment at how dull the name sounded compared to the person bearing it. Of a sudden, his thoughts realigned, his eyes flashed, and a smile lifted his smooth freckled cheeks.

"Austin! Like the Prince Austin!" He almost shouted.

"You know him?"

"Not personally, but I've heard of him. Milkah the bard always sings about his heroic deeds. I even got to see him once." Ollie responded with accruing enthusiasm, much more than when he asked to speak about Eliza.

"Commander of the dragon legion, hero of Viridia, a dragon slayer, and warrior like no one; he leads the best men in all the kingdom." Ollie bragged. "He is young, handsome, brave and has fought countless battles. He can shoot an arrow without missing a single shot from horseback!" An excited Ollie raised his hands to demonstrate with an invisible bow. "He's never lost a single fight! Me parents never stops talking about him." he added...

Produkt-Details

• Erscheint lt. Verlag: 15.6.2025
• Sprache: englisch
• Themenwelt: Literatur ► Fantasy / Science Fiction ► Fantasy
• ISBN-10: 0-00-103552-5 / 0001035525
• ISBN-13: 978-0-00-103552-2 / 9780001035522