Web of Light by Kyra Dune #ASMSG
COMING SOON: New YA Fantasy from author Kyra Dune
WEB OF LIGHT
To be released in October 2013
Blurb:
When Queen Eanndra calls the leaders of the Territories and their heirs to Star Mountain for a Conclave, none of them knows just what to expect.
Each of the heirs looks forward to the Conclave in different ways. Seva hopes to discover the identity of her father. Roth worries about having to interact with non-humans. Valdor simply wants to be invisible. Iza seeks to visit the ancient home of her people. And Ganamere, the prince and future king, prepares himself for the tedium of a court function. None of them expects to have their lives changed forever or to find themselves caught up in the repercussions of a war that ended three hundred years ago.
With the return of the Web of Light, destruction and death must surely follow. And it will be up to the heirs to decide how far things will go. Sides will be chosen and lines drawn; friendships made and broken. For within every heart lies the dark seed of betrayal.
Excerpt:
Valdor frowned as Seva moved around the statue, walking as if she were in a daze. He felt oddly connected and protective of the girl, perhaps because there was a good chance she was his sister, perhaps for other reasons.
When Seva came up even with the statue instead of stopping as if she had run into an invisible wall, as had Roth and Iza, she walked right on past. Iza gasped, pressing a hand to her lips. For a moment no one moved, then Tyde tried to do as Seva had done, only to be stopped. He growled in frustration.
Seva continued across the open space and up the stairs. “What’s going to happen if she goes inside?” Valdor asked. There was no doubt in his mind that the goddess had allowed her to pass, but for what reason, that was what had him worried. His mother had taught him to always be wary of gods. They were a capricious lot, she had told him, and not always mindful of the delicacy of mortal life.
“I…I do not know.” There was a trace of envy in Iza’s eyes as she watched Seva open the temple door. “But I should think it will be something remarkable. No one has set foot inside that place in three hundred years.”
Valdor hesitated only a moment longer, then tried to pass Tyde, who still stood beside the statue. What he felt was a kind of resistance, but when he pushed against it, it gave way enough for him to move forward. It was slow going, as if he were walking with stones attached to his feet. The air was thick, it pressed against his chest and made each breath a chore. By the time he broke through and was standing on the other side, he was panting as if he’d been running a great distance. It had taken so long that Seva had already entered the temple. He glanced back at the others, then jogged across the open space and up the steps.
He paused at the open door to the temple. Within, was a wide chamber, the walls, ceiling, and floors of which were covered in a multitude of mosaics that told a story beyond Valdor’s ability to understand. Most of the figures were Gari-Za, though he spotted a number of humans and blood witches and even a few flyers. Some of the scenes were peaceful, even pastoral, while others were clearly depictions of fierce and bloody battles.
In the center of the room was an empty space surrounded by what seemed to be a twisted rope painted onto the tiles. Dust motes drifted in the still air. There was a hallow feeling to this place, like nowhere else that he had ever been, it seemed almost a sacrilege to step foot inside.
Seva stood in the middle of the open space, her head tilted back as if she were gazing up at the ceiling, where a woman robed in white held a silver sword in one hand and a golden orb in the other. Seva’s eyes were closed.
Valdor cautiously approached, wincing as his footsteps echoed off the walls. He wanted to call out to her but somehow he dare not. It was a helpless, frustrating feeling, not knowing what was happening or how he could help or even if he should.