Lady Shilight - Lady Warrior - YA

By Sheril Lee

This edition includes the Young Adult version of the first three books in the Lady Shilight Series - Shilight lives in a land filled with kings, witches, and warriors. She strives to become a superior swordsman and life grants Shilight her wish, but in a surprising way. When her homeland is attacked, her heroism is noted by the king. He sends her off to do his bidding throughout the Kingdom of Dovonshar. Shilight wields great power. This power causes resentment from those in high positions who are offended at having to take orders from a woman. This mounting resentment eventually puts her life in danger. Follow Shilight on her odyssey as she battles her way to become a Lady Warrior.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: May 21, 2019
• ISBN: 9780359582181

Book preview

MAP

LAND MAP

LADY WARRIOR

BOOK 1

CHAPTER 1

There I was stuck in a duck pen. The pen was too short for me to lie down, and not tall enough for me to sit up comfortably. If I did sit up my head was bent down to where my chin almost touched my chest. If I curled up tightly in the fetal position I could almost fall asleep. Why could I not have been born petite like my younger sister? Instead I grew tall and at five feet ten inches. I towered over most women. Heck, I was as tall as most men.

King Hakurt is trying to break my spirit by putting me in this small, smelly pen. It would not work. My father raised ducks along with chickens, goats, and horses. I was raised around a potpourri of animal smells. Lying in this duck poop with its strong poultry smell did not bother me. I had smelled worse. I was upset that this stuff is staining my skirt and this putrid smell would linger in my hair for days. If King Hakurt thought he could break me, he would have to wait a long time. I had been in tougher situations. Somehow I would get out of this one too!

While sitting there I started thinking about my childhood and how I grew up. I was born in Dovonshar, a large city located in a land full of castles, kings, witches, and giants. The city of Dovonshar was the heart and seat of the Dovonshar Kingdom. The Kingdom covered a vast area of land. In addition to the city of Dovonshar the kingdom included multiple hamlets, villages, and towns. Two of the towns were harbor towns located on the coastline of a beautiful sea.

The king and queen lived in an imposing castle on the northernmost end of the city. The castle, along with the entire city of Dovonshar, was surrounded by a large impenetrable wall. The city was surrounded by rolling hills and was within sight of a large forest. It was a safe place to live and grow up. Our king, King Kuandel, made sure of that. He had the finest military in the land. Although our city had been attacked before, our military had always been victorious.

My father was a military man. He had slowly risen through the ranks until he became a military advisor to the king. Everyone led a relaxed life because the last war happened long before I was born. Nevertheless the military met regularly to keep sharp, as my father liked to say.

Most people lived within the city walls. Those who lived outside the walls grew crops or raised larger animals. My father owned a bit of land that was located within a few minutes ride from the castle. He built a home on this parcel of land where my mother preferred to stay. She said she did not want to live in the castle where people were willing to smile to your face and then stab you in the back. If the top military officials wanted to gather and meet, father would ride into the city and stay in the castle overnight. It was an idyllic life.

My father had been blessed with three daughters, but no sons. It soon became apparent to my parents that I was not like my sisters. They were more petite in size, and I was tall and slender with a generous sized bosom. But what people remembered the most about me were my spellbinding, dark green eyes. No matter who I met they always remembered my piercing green eyes. Mother thought my eye color came from her side of the family, but she was not sure. My father did not care where my eye color came from. He just liked to call me his little green-eyed hawk.

I idolized my father and I tried really hard to be like a son to him. I followed him everywhere. He taught me how to throw a knife, and swing a sword. At the age of thirteen my path in life was set in motion by two events. The first one started when my father arranged for me to go to a special military school. It was located in a city far from home. Before I left for school the second event happened.

The day before I was to leave for school, I walked over to a nearby stream. It was my special place to go to think and be alone. The stream was down a ways from where I lived, and across the main road that led to the castle. The stream was lined by thick bushes and tall mature trees. You could not see it from the road, so I felt safe going there alone. I wanted to bathe in the water one more time before I left for the military school. I slipped out of my outer clothing. Wearing only my undergarments, I gingerly walked over the rocks until I was in knee deep water. A few minutes later I was surprised to see a man ride his horse through the brush. He was heading toward the stream, and me!

Already at the young age of thirteen I was five feet, eight inches tall and blossoming quickly into womanhood. There I was partly clad in only my underclothing. The man and I locked eyes. I was not scared or embarrassed, but I did feel uncomfortable.

A gentleman usually looks the other way, I shouted loudly.

Quickly he turned his horse around and mumbled some sort of an apology. The walk from the water to the spot where I placed my clothes seemed like a hundred miles away.

He was such a handsome man. He had dark hair and deep set eyes. I did not have enough time to see what color they were, but they looked kind. I could feel my cheeks blushing pink because I found him so handsome. As fast as I could I pulled on my clothes. It was not easy because I was dripping wet.

When I was decent I asked him.

Who are you and what are you doing here?

The stranger turned around and replied.

My name is Bardeth. My horse needed a drink of water. I had no idea you were bathing here. May I know your name?

My body was trembling inside. I knew if I tried to speak my voice would be high and squeaky. Narrowing my eyes I glared at him, and stormed off towards home. Bardeth gave his horse a drink of water then proceeded to catch up to me on the road.

Would you like a ride? he asked politely.

NO! I shot back angrily.

Secretly I wanted to look at him again but I did not want to be obvious. I stopped walking. He stopped his horse beside me. My heart was racing as I looked up at him. Looking deep into his eyes I growled, in a deep, serious voice.

Go away.

Tell me your name, and I will go away, he replied.

I did not answer. I spun around on my heels and continued walking home. He followed.

My father was outside when we arrived. He greeted me as I walked up to him.

Shilight, who is that with you?

"Thanks father. Now he knows my name." I thought silently.

"So this is where you live Shilight, Bardeth said with a grin.

Yes, I replied and walked into the house.

My father and Bardeth sat down on the porch and began talking as I looked inside for something to drink. When I returned with drinks for everyone, I noticed they were getting along quite well. Bardeth gladly accepted his drink. As the men talked I learned Bardeth was in the military stationed at a military camp on the far border of Dovonshar. The King ordered the military to secure the border closest to the Dragoatin border. He wanted to keep a sharp eye on his closest enemies after defeating them in the last war. The Dragoats are a sneaky, cruel, warring people. It seems as if they enjoy war as much as we love peace.

Bardeth had been stationed at the border for the past two years. He was now eighteen years old. He was given leave to come home to see his uncle who was ill. He had traveled many days and nights to get here. He was tired, and was grateful for a chance to rest before he rode into the city to see his uncle. When he left our house he looked me in the eyes and said we would see each other again. As he rode away, he took part of my heart with him.

CHAPTER 2

The next day my parents saw me off to the military school. The schools headmaster, Ufsant, was taking me and six boys to the school. The school was a three day ride from home. Ufsant assured my father I would be well cared for. He personally would make sure all my childish and girlie ways would be gone when I returned. Little did I know truer words had never been spoken.

We traveled in a horse drawn wagon. Everyday we were bounced and jostled around in the back of the wagon. Almost immediately I got a lesson in how cruel six boys can be to a girl. They took turns picking on me. They laughed at me for wanting to be a swordsman, and they tormented me endlessly about it. I tried not to cry, but words can hurt and I was hurt. If I thought things would get better once I was in school, I was wrong. It was harder then I could have imagined. I had never felt so alone, and I cried myself to sleep frequently.

The school made little effort to accommodate me because I was a girl. Everyone at the school slept in one big long room. They had an older man sleep, like a sentry, between the boys and the girls. When I say girls I mean three girls opposed to twenty-three boys. Our ages ranged from twelve to fifteen years old. At sixteen we would all be considered adults. As adults we would be moved to the regular military barracks back in Dovonshar. There we would receive further military training.

The school itself was in an old monastery built in a different era. The building had been built encircling a courtyard. That is where we practiced. Rain or shine, hot or cold, we trained. Periodically we would have competitive matches. The matches were a big deal and they were held several times a year. The combatants could win extra food, or an extra blanket. One of those things would be taken away from you if you lost. The matches were held indoors where a large fighting pit had been set up. The pit was filled with sand, and wooden benches had been set up for spectators. Family members were notified, but few traveled the long distance to watch the matches. The men who did show up were from the surrounding communities and towns. The men booed and heckled the girls when we fought. I hated match time.

No one tried harder then I did to learn our lessons. I was not as strong as