Journey of Lost Souls

By Josh Raiter

Welcome to the world of Crystos, a place where Elements help people go about their daily lives. Enter Koshka Ralica, our main character, a young elementalist that lives on the Continent of Fire with his parents and he lives a very good life. That is until the Elemental of Darkness kills his parents and he goes on a quest of revenge to find the Elemental and take him down for good. Along the way he meets tons of new friends and new enemies, but his friends and remaining family have his back. A story of action and adventure, magic and fantasy, and even some cheesy romance. This book has everything that a reader is looking for and maybe even more.

• Language: English
• Publisher: iUniverse
• Release date: Nov 3, 2009
• ISBN: 9781440181535

Josh Raiter

Josh has been dreaming of this day when his book would be published. Ever since he was 13, he has spent a lot of time writing, 5 years later, his dream is coming true. He lives at home with his parents and sister in the small town of LaSalle, IL. He is currently studying Business Administration at Illinios Valley Community College and also plays on the college tennis team. In his spare time, he enjoys playing tennis, working at Hy-Vee, and constantly thinking of new ideas for his next book. Also, make sure that you check out his Fan Page on Facebook. If you become a fan then you will recieve regular updates about his writing process and what is going on inside his head. You can even fill out a character application and see if you can get a character that will make an appearance in one of his future books.

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Copyright © 2009 by Josh Raiter

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the publisher except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

This is a work of fiction. All of the characters, names, incidents, organizations, and dialogue in this novel are either the products of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously.

iUniverse books may be ordered through booksellers or by contacting:

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any Web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

ISBN: 978-1-4401-8152-8 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-4401-8153-5 (ebk)

iUniverse rev. date: 10/1/2009

Contents

Elemental Chaos

The Nightmare Mercenaries

Out at Sea

Conflicting Elements

The Continent of Water

Battle Royale

Rough Waters

The Continent of Earth

To War!

Sibling Rivalry

Betrayal

Meltdown

Set-up

The Continent of Light

The Last of the Knights

Clash of the Elements

Final Confrontation

Acknowledgements

Chapter 1

Elemental Chaos

The city of Ashna, the capital city of the Continent of Fire, was filled with music and laughter as the city celebrated the Festival of 1000 Flames. The festival starts at the beginning of the week and goes on until the last day of the week and it ends with a massive fireworks display. It is one of the largest festivals in the world and people come from far and wide to sample the fine cuisine and to meet new people.

Smell all of the spices. The flame spice buns are going to be great this year. Said Koshka as he walked down the street where the festival was being held with his parents Sonta and Mirra, his older brother Ziro, and his girlfriend Suena. Suddenly, Koshka looked around and saw that nobody was moving and when he looked straight ahead he saw a black robed figure walking toward him. The figure was getting closer and it seemed that it would run into him, but instead it passed right through him and he shuddered. He turned around and the figure vanished as time resumed.

Koshka, what’s wrong? Ziro asked as he turned and looked at Koshka, who just shook his head.

Its nothing. Did you feel anything weird just now?

Yeah, I did. It was kind of like a light pressure, but it only lasted for a few seconds and then it was gone. Come on, let’s catch up to mom and dad. Koshka and Ziro caught up to their parents as the air was filled with a beautiful serenade and a crowd of people gathered around something. When Koshka got to the front of the group he was amazed to see a beautiful, young girl with long, black hair dancing and singing to energetic music. The crowd looked on in awe and as the song ended a round of applause erupted from the crowd. Koshka noticed that his parents were gone and decided that he should try and catch up to them, again.

Come one, come all. Challenge Beerosh to a no rules brawl. Prizes are awarded to winners and losers. Came a voice from one of the tents lining the street and Koshka tapped Ziro on the shoulder as he caught up with them.

Hey, you want to give it a try? He asked and Ziro nodded his head and they walked over to the tent and signed up.

You two be careful. I have been watching this for some time now and he likes to stick close to his opponents and use strong earth spells to knock them out quickly. Sonta said as he came over to them.

Thanks dad. Koshka and Ziro said as they ran into the tent to prepare. When they saw how big the tent was on the inside they both let out surprised gasps. Just then a short, young man came over, carrying a large sheet of paper.

Koshka and Ziro Ralica. You’re up next, so if you will enter the ring and wait for the signal. Thank you. They did as they were told and entered the ring where they met Beerosh, and average looking man with huge muscles. The short man ran into the middle of the ring and shot a fireball into the air, signaling the start of the match. Beerosh immediately put his hands to the ground and yelled out a spell.

Terraforming! Ziro and Koshka jumped into the air and just in time as earth spikes shot out of the ground. Koshka retaliated by throwing three shock orbs at Beerosh, who caught them in his bare hands and crushed them.

Try this one. Water Needle Acupuncture! Ziro yelled as thousands of needles appeared and flew toward their target. The force of the impact caused an explosion and when the smoke cleared Beerosh was still standing with no damage to his body at all. He dashed toward Koshka and began to pummel him with his fists. Ziro, who was watching from the sideline, pulled a crystal out of his pocket that was filled with a greenish-yellow fluid. He tossed the crystal at Beerosh’s feet and Koshka shielded himself as it exploded, enveloping that side of the ring in a green smoke. When the smoke cleared the ring of rock surrounding Koshka crumbled and Beerosh was standing in what appeared to be a puddle of clear liquid.

I can’t believe that you have dissolved the Diamond Skin armor. Now you will feel my true power! Beerosh began to release massive amounts of earth energy and caused small chunks of the floor to raise and become suspended in the air around him. No one has ever made it this far and beat me. Now feel the power, Diamond Cutter. The puddle of liquid quivered and attached itself to the rocks that were surrounding Beerosh, causing them to become diamonds. The diamonds floated high into the air and began to rain down on Koshka and Ziro. They ran straight ahead and as they ran they created swords of fire. They dashed toward Beerosh and Koshka vanished only to appear behind him with his blade pressed to the back of his neck as Ziro pressed his against his throat.

You two work well together. I surrender. Beerosh raised his arms into the air and the short young man ran out to the center of the ring and raised Koshka and Ziro’s arms and announced.

We have our winners, Koshka and Ziro Ralica. Now if you will follow me. The two of them followed him to a nearby table when Sonta walked into the tent and went up to Beerosh.

It has been a long time hasn’t it, Beerosh? You haven’t aged one bit. Sonta said as he was pulled into a bear hug.

I could say the same thing about you. Beerosh said as he let go of Sonta. What have you been up to?

Nothing really. Other then getting married and having two kids. While Sonta and Beerosh were talking the short man was presenting Koshka and Ziro with their reward: a scroll with lines of runes written on it, a pouch of gold, and a trophy shaped like a fist.

Congratulations on defeating the mighty Beerosh. You can take everything on this table and use it wisely. Have a nice day. He explained as he walked off to check if anyone else had signed up to battle Beerosh. Koshka and Ziro put the stuff into their bags and walked out of the tent. Beerosh looked over his shoulder and made sure they were gone and turned to Sonta.

Has your younger son realized who he is yet?

No, I don’t think so.

The power that he uses is very advanced for your average 17 year old Elementalist.

I know. I will tell him when the time is right.

The next day Koshka was at home preparing for the huge Elemental Chaos tournament that is held during the festival. Someone knocked on the door and when he opened it he was pulled into the waiting arms of Suena.

It’s good to see you too, Suena. Now could you stop crushing me? She released him and laughed. Are you ready for today? It won’t be like practice, it’s going to be the real deal. That is why I brought in a secret weapon. Someone knocked on the door and Koshka opened it, embracing the man in the doorway.

It’s good to see you too, Koshka. Is your mother around? The man asked and Koshka replied.

Yeah, she’s in the kitchen. Are you ready for this afternoon?

Are you kidding? We are going to wipe the floor with the other teams.

Thanks, uncle Sano.

I’d do anything for my favorite nephews. Sano walked into the kitchen and started a conversation with Mirra while Koshka turned back to Suena.

Are you sure that you want to do this? You don’t have to if you don’t want to. Koshka put his hands on Suena’s shoulders.

No, I want to. People will do crazy things when they are in love.

I don’t understand… was as far as he got as Suena kissed him on the lips.

Koshka, are you ready to go? Mirra stuck her head out of the kitchen and continued. I didn’t mean to interrupt, but you need to go or you’re going to be late. Koshka and Suena separated and both of them blushed as Sano walked out of the kitchen and opened the front door.

Come on you two. We don’t have any time to waste. Sano chuckled a little when he said this and Koshka and Suena ran out the door after him.

They arrived at the arena around 11 and met Ziro at the front entrance.

Hey Koshka, I found Beerosh and asked him if he wanted to join the team. He agreed and said that he would be here in a little while. They all sat on a bench in the registration area and after 20 minutes Beerosh came walking in. Koska went up to the desk and got the registration forms while his team stood around and talked strategy. He filled it out as quickly as possible and handed it to the receptionist who handed him a slip of paper with a number on it.

This number represents the slot your team is in. Go over to the status board and check. Said the receptionist as she handed another number to a man who had turned in his form.

According to this, we face Dark Chaos in our first match. Koshka said as he went over to the board to check it out. Let me check their stats. Koshka touched the team name and a status screen came up and gave their statistics. It seems that they specialize in darkness and are a B-rank team. Koshka exited that screen and selected his team. Our team is only a D-rank. We are going to have to prove them wrong. His team cheered as they walked into the waiting area for their match to start.

The waiting area was a room that had an open deck that looked out over the arena. Banners were draped across the front that had the team name on it. The first teams were called and they jumped from the waiting area directly into the arena.

Welcome, ladies and gentlemen! For our first match we have Frozen Tundra going against Shining Seraphim. The battlefield was chosen by Shining Seraphim and they want to battle on the wind field. Yelled the announcer as a huge whirlwind erupted in the center of the battlefield. On my mark the match will begin. 3…2…1…Go! The announcer got off the field as quickly as he could as the battle started.

As soon as the match started the members of Shining Seraphim created wings of light and took off into the whirlwind. Frozen Tundra had no clue what to do as arrows of light were fired in all directions from within the whirlwind. The entire team was defeated in less than 30 seconds. Koshka got to his feet and watched in awe as the team was defeated. The screen on the other side of the arena showed an instant replay of the battle and it showed the arrows bouncing off the protective barrier that stands between the audience and the arena and hitting each of the members of the other team.

Koshka walked over to the status board in the waiting area and touched the names of both teams. Two screens came up displaying both Frozen Tundra and Shining Seraphim’s stats.

Look at this. Frozen Tundra is only a B-rank team and Shining Seraphim is an S-rank. There was no way the other team could have won. Everyone was amazed because they had never seen an S-rank team before. The announcers voice boomed over the arena again as the two teams were moved off the field.

That was an amazing battle! Our next two teams to go at it are Dark Chaos and Team Ralica. Dark Chaos opened a dark portal on the wall of their waiting area and another one appeared on the ground below. They walked into it single file and appeared on the arena floor. Koshka and his team jumped and used the power of wind to cushion their fall. The battlefield was chosen by Dark Chaos before the match and they want to fight in the dark. The field was bathed in the dark of night with only an artificial moon to provide some light. Now get ready. 3…2…1…Go!

Dark Illusion. Said the leader of Dark Chaos as his team created clones of themselves and surrounded Koshka and the others. Sano stepped forward and two knives slid out of his coat.

You guys let me handle this. I’ve had to deal with this kind of stuff before. He readied himself and began to throw the knives in all directions.

Flame arrow barrage. Koshka called out as he ran over and began to fire multiple arrows into the clones. All of the clones were soon defeated and Koshka and Sano were panting heavily. Suena ran over and created a rain cloud above their heads. The rain fell from the clouds and as it came into contact with their wounds they were instantly healed.

We need to finish this before we run out of mana. This will give us an advantage. Ziro said as he pulled a clear crystal with a pulsing white center out of his pocket and threw it on the ground. The light that was trapped inside exploded outward, pushing the darkness away and revealing the members of Dark Chaos. Now we can have a real fight! Koshka began with a barrage of fireballs followed by Ziro who lobbed a few crystal bombs. When the smoke cleared only one person