Shadows Gather: The Rising Shadows Series, #3

By Shana Stephens

I saved Death. That's right. I saved him. Meanwhile, the entire country is at war. Everywhere we go, someone wants us dead. For every new ally we make, enemies are tenfold. But somehow, we're stil alive, and I'm going to keep it that way. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Shana Stephens
• Release date: Jun 15, 2023
• ISBN: 9798223818274

Shana Stephens

Hello! I'm Shana, author of my debut series, The Rising Shadows series. When I'm not reading or writing, I enjoy cuddling with my cats, watching anime and gaming. I also am a nature lover and enjoy walks and hikes. If you enjoy my books, please leave a review!

Book preview

Chapter 1

The sharp crack of a twig snapping underfoot caused Death’s sister to spin around, her eyes dark as she took in my stumbling form. I came to a halt, panting in rough gasps that the filter mask reverberated back into my face. Breathing in the same stifling air over and over again surely wasn’t helping the lightheaded feeling that had started.

What’s wrong? she asked. Her tone did not hold much concern.

I don’t know, I replied honestly. One second, I had been walking along normally. The next second my lungs were aching, heart pounding as sweat poured down my back. I could feel the dampness of it beginning to soak through my clothes. It would cause a chill soon enough. Great. I tried to pull in a full breath but my lungs burned with the effort.

Have a seat, Seraphine said, her slender fingers grasping my elbow to guide me to a fallen tree. I almost fell into it, sinking gratefully onto the hard surface. With some of the weight taken off my body I could breathe a bit easier, but my back still slumped in on itself. It was too much to sit upright.

Did you do any magic? she asked, her tone suddenly sharp. I was too weary to meet her eyes.

Yea, I mumbled.

What spell did you attempt?

I didn’t really mean to attempt anything, it just kind of happened, I wheezed.

You need to tell me. It’s of great importance, she replied. I forced myself to seek out her face then, hearing actual concern this time. Her eyes seemed puzzled. That was interesting.

I was just trying to bring in some heat from the sun. It’s nearing sunset and it gets so cold. I wanted to store up some warmth.

She jumped forward, her spread fingers grasping my temples. I couldn’t see her face but could hear muttering, either too low to understand or in a different language.

Fool. It’s sitting inside you still. Your body can’t accept it. Release it at once.

How? I whispered. It was all I could do to stay awake.

The same way you took it in, just let it out.

Laboriously I lifted my right hand and twisted in a counter clockwise fashion. I had used the clockwise motion to lock onto what my mind had wanted the heat to do. Eyes closed, I felt for just that heat and twisted it back out of my body. A wave of energy left me in a rush, taking all of my air with it. My body crumpled off the log as my legs went slack, and I fell face first into the earth. My nose hit first, landing with a hard smack on the rigid ground.

She left me alone as I was able to finally take a shaky, but full breath. I sucked air in gulps, as much as the filter mask would allow. Weakly I pushed myself up, my nose throbbing in pain as I straightened. Her fury was cold as it looked down upon me.

A dead Aleah is how useful to me? she asked. And to Eremiel?

Thanks, I retorted. It was still weird, hearing his real name out loud. I was so used to thinking of him as Death.

You don’t get to have the attitude with me. You aren’t studied in magic. You need to consult with me before experimenting.

Why would I consult with you? You aren’t a mage like Eremiel, and I’m doing a magic that none of your kind knows how to do! I snapped.

"I know enough about magic to keep you alive, as has been proven. Eremiel would be a better instructor, but he is currently being tortured, remember? The faster we can get to him the better. Unless you like slowing us down." I winced at the reminder, rage bubbling up again at the thought of him being captured.

You’re being such a bitch, I said, unable to help myself. I got to my feet, patting the dirt off my pants, feeling like crap after falling and after having the spell backfire. What right did she have?

Would you rather me help you up? Coddle you? Tell you it’ll all be okay? I met her hard gaze with one of my own. I’m not my brother. We get along fine when you aren’t being an idiot so keep that in mind.

She turned on her heel and began swiftly moving forward. Her long, dark hair was a gentle wave behind her, reaching down to her hips. They were curved in a more feminine way than Death’s, since she was, in fact, a woman; but other than the slight curves, the two could have been twins.

I matched pace behind her, pushing away the foliage that blocked my way. My breathing and heart rate seemed normal. While it was true that we got along fine most of the time, it didn’t change the fact that she was rude. Like it or not though, she was the only ally I had until we could free Eremiel. I ground my teeth together and quickened my pace, my mind darkening at the remembered torture I had just escaped from my fellow humans.

I skirted a log, my soft footfalls barely rustling the underbrush. Her pace didn’t quicken as I neared, and when I broke even with her and chanced a look over, her face wore its usual neutral expression. That small show of anger was apparently it. I kept expecting their kind to act human, and kept being surprised when they didn’t.

Do we have a plan yet? I asked, wanting to break the icy silence that I still felt in the air.

I’m not sure what magic to use to be honest, Seraphine said. First, I was considering illusion magic as the best route, but like you mentioned, I am not a mage. I can’t figure out how we would do anything to mask our presence.

Yea, I’ve been wracking my brain on that as well, I sighed, letting my tension out with my breath. It would certainly be nice to just waltz right in and take him. But how could we possibly pull off a spell like that? I’d never even seen Death do such a thing.

Will they have detection magic, like the one town? I asked.

Yes. We will need to bypass it without being noticed, Seraphine replied, her tone growing sour. I chanced another glance over to see her brow furrowed in thought. I looked down, watching my feet move almost silently across the ground.

Can we shape-shift? I asked.

"Only if you had a deep enough understanding of how the animal body you wanted to shape-shift into works, and an equally detailed idea of your own body to shift back to. I certainly am not capable of it."

Maybe we should stick with human tricks if we can’t magic it, I said softly.

Human tricks? she asked, this time turning to face me. I smiled, but she couldn’t see it.

"Well, you’re his sister. And one of them. They don’t know that you’re plotting this. You could probably come up with a convincing lie to just walk right in. Then all we have to do is get me in once you’re inside, or I somehow plan a diversion from the outside so that you two can break back out."

She met my gaze. Her eyes were bright, the brow still furrowed. Silence stretched in the air between us. My mind filled with images of Trojan horses, catapults, and tanks. Surely between the two of us we could come up with something...

Even though they have no reason to suspect me, I have no reason to appear there. That alone will make them suspicious. It won’t work, she finally said.

Should we go in guns blazing? I asked dully. It had been one thing to have gone guns blazing against soldiers who had been intent on killing me. The Shadow Walkers, on the other hand, had been helpful to me.

I know; I feel the same way, she murmured. We continued forward, soft crunching sounds filling the otherwise empty silence. I looked up. Overhead the tree canopy was bare. There should have been pine needles, or leaves, but a lot of them had shriveled up and fallen in the drought.

I reached out a hand and let it feel the rough bark of a passing tree. My once sore fingertips were healed with the help of Death’s sister. The nails would take a while to grow back, but the skin had sewn shut at least. My fingers danced idly over the layers of bark, then fell away and back to my side. I looked at the broad branches, spanning out, my mind swirling around the idea of climbing above their sights, or digging below. Or...

Could we fly over their radars? I asked, spinning around to face her.

They have 360-degree shields and viewing. Humans use planes, helicopters, gliders, etcetera. It was necessary.

Damn, I muttered. I looked over again at the sound of rustling. She was slowing down and pulling something from her pack. It was a sleeping bag like the ones Eremiel and I had used on our travels. I slowed to a stop to stand beside her. My arms immediately wrapped around myself as a cold chill set in. Somehow, I didn’t notice it as much when we were walking.

"If we can’t get around the detection, we have to be able to fool it, she said, her tone adamant. How do we fool it?" she whispered, fingering the material.

My mind raced with ideas of magic, spells, and how we could use them. I stretched my arms out, feeling for any lost potential energy. A gentle wind rustling the leaves left behind trails of it, unused energy just waiting to disappear. I snatched it up, feeling its foreignness twist in my body. I focused it to my hands, letting them take on the full weight of the itchy feeling.

Somewhere a branch cracked and fell, rushing to the ground with the force of gravity. I snatched up that energy, too. A small bundle was at my fingertips. But what to do with it? Without being able to cast a spell for invisibility, or for disguise, magic was feeling useless, the weight of it heavy in my hands as my mind turned dark. I had only just discovered how to use magic. Now I had to come up with spells, too?

I sank down, letting out a long breath and stretching out my legs for a moment. Dried leaves crunched beneath me and I relished in the sound. With most of the animals gone or dead, it was a lot quieter. Any sound was welcome, unless it was the sound of an enemy.

I think we should go with a decoy, I said. If they have their attention on the decoy, they shouldn’t notice us, right?

They would probably split their force in half, she replied, sitting across from me, her legs crossing beneath her. She made it look so easy to sit like that, but then again, their kind was more flexible with the persistent training.

Maybe if we go fast enough, we can sneak in before they can respond to the alarms?

Like how you were running when you vacated your holding cell?

Yea, just like that, I replied, pushing aside the fresh memory of practically flying out of the place that had been holding me for torture.

That could work. They would see us coming but they wouldn’t be able to stop us. Then we’d just need to get to Eremiel as quickly as possible and break back out without being killed.

That is the tricky part, I muttered. The not getting killed part.

What had my life become? Just the other day I had narrowly escaped death. Now, I was heading into danger again, except this time it was by choice. UGH.

What if you brought me as a prisoner? Gained their trust that way? And then snuck us both out, or I busted myself out again?

It’s still the issue of getting out safely. If we can get in undetected then getting out would be easier. If we get in with alarms raised then getting out might prove impossible, she replied.

I looked up at the tree line again, trying to spot the sun or some clouds through it. There wasn’t much of anything to see. Just an endless expanse of gray. How long had it been since Yellowstone erupted now? Had it already been two months? Everything was still so dry. Hopefully when it rained it wouldn’t still be acid rain, or something else toxic.

How about a fire, I said softly, the words heavy on my tongue as sudden inspiration sparked inside me. She was silent. I looked down, seeking out her eyes, her approval, but her sight was downcast. She was idly twisting a dead leaf around and around and around.

Fire is an easy enough spell for both of us, or easy enough with human methods. If a fire surrounds the building, they will need to take action. All of them would need to act, or flee. It could be the perfect chance. We’ll probably lose that stronghold unless they can put the fire out, but we’d get Eremiel out. I think it’s a solid idea. Our plan B if it backfires is the accelerated running, she said, rising in one fluid motion. Her thin hand reached down and I clasped it, letting her help pull me to my feet.

Aye, Aye, I replied, falling into step beside her as we moved out.

Chapter 2

Icould barely see as I felt along the rough edge of a rock-face. Death’s sister had insisted the switch for one of their shelters was somewhere on the rock, but I had been feeling along for what felt like an hour with bruised and numbed fingers to no avail. She had disappeared into the darkness, heading towards the sound of water that I could not hear. Why was she even bothering? It was probably tainted. Not that we had much choice. The shelters were probably bare by now; and her provisions were running dangerously low.

You’re still at it? she said, her voice right behind my ear. I jumped, my head bumping into a jutting rock ledge. Tears immediately sprang to my eyes at the sudden, sharp pain. I stepped back carefully, my hand going to the sore spot automatically even though touching it made it worse.

I have some water. I want to try magic to clean it once we’re inside, she said. I couldn’t see her face but her tone sounded like she was alight with curiosity. Sometimes she was too similar to Death. It was weird. The children’s book I had read warned against curiosity, but the two of them were endlessly curious, like a pair of kittens. Huh. Kitten.

Her nimble fingers made quick work of some lever, somewhere, and the rock wall opened into itself. I followed her in and pushed past her body so she could shut it. Darkness surrounded us and my breathing stopped. I stood perfectly still, waiting.

Make a light, will you? I’m still struggling at gathering energy, she said, her voice almost sulky.

I snapped my fingers and a light floated into the air. It was getting easier with every hour of every day. Almost as easy as breathing with the simple spells, like light. Eremiel had created light from seemingly nothing. That was the hardest. With the darkness around us, I turned to my own my heat. He had done it before, inside of the mountain we had hunkered in while Yellowstone erupted. He hadn’t had extra pools of energy to draw on, though. Other than the immediate ache of coldness in my chest, I was able to slowly absorb heat from the energy I had gathered from lost sounds, vibrations, and the wind. It’s what my body should have done with the sun’s energy I had tried to absorb earlier. Maybe they weren’t as compatible.

A dim white light appeared and hovered above us, linked to my presence. With every step I took it would follow, or obey any other intention I had for it. Magic was amazing. As the light flitted around after me, illuminating the room, I could see it was slightly bigger than what I had feared from the outside. There was just one cot, which seemed to be typical of their shelters. There was also a small chest, probably stocked with clothes and shoes. The top of the chest was bare. That was probably where all the food and water had been kept.

I turned around to see Seraphine sitting on the cool rock floor, the container of water in front of her.

We should be able to pull the debris out of here is what I’m thinking. Attract it to something.

I did see Remiel do a spell that pulled ash out of a room with a charged lightning bolt, but I don’t think that will work with water, I replied, taking a seat across from her. The white light cast shadows over her already thin face, making her look skeletal.

Maybe we can pull just the water out then. Water to water?

That could work, I replied, pulling out my own empty container. Lifting my mask, I quickly bit the edge of my thumb. Pain sprang up immediately but I ignored it and allowed one drop of blood to fall into the water container. One drop wouldn’t hurt anyone.

Good idea, she whispered. Here, we need this to make a connection, she added. I watched as she fished out a piece of twine from inside her coat. With one of her hidden knives, she cut a piece long enough to hang between the two containers. I took the piece she held out and fed it into the container in front of me, letting it touch my blood and soak in it. I looked across to see her doing the same with the water.

Alright, ready? Should we do it together? I asked. She gave me a nod, her eyes full of smiles. I placed one hand over the water, and the other over the empty container. She layered her hands above mine. Slowly, I exhaled, waiting until we both felt calm. The light danced overhead, pulling shadows from us. Water to water. Should be easy enough. Right?

I focused on my blood, and the fact that it was mostly water. The twine was already connecting the two. It would allow the water to move easier. With the leftover energy from the wind, the last of it that I had, I increased its affinity for attraction. Water always liked to touch itself. That’s why it beaded on surfaces instead of rolling off. My mind filled with the cool blue idea of water itself. Water to water, water to blood, from an area of high concentration to low concentration, through the twine.

The energy was leaving me with nothing to show for it and I frowned, but suddenly the water arced across the twine, flowing in a steady stream into the container. I gasped, and Seraphine’s hands on mine tightened. Had she done it? She was improving as fast as I was. I grinned, watching the water, pure water, trickle into the clean container.

After a few moments it was complete. She removed the twine and pulled my light closer to her, surprising me yet again. I hadn’t willed it to move, but there it was, hanging over her shoulder.

Disgusting, she said softly, tilting it to show me. What had been imperceptible in solution was plain to see now. Black sediment sat heavy in the bottom of her container, it’s constitution looking similar to vomit. I scrunched my nose in distaste.

I’ll clean it later, she muttered. Her tone mirrored my own feelings of repulsion as I looked away, fatigue filling me. That spell had been more difficult than I had imagined. It was possible some of my own energy went into it as well.

Seraphine lifted the water container to her mouth and took a couple of quick swallows. Her satisfied sigh made thirst spring to existence in me, but I sat patiently until she passed it over. Lifting my filter mask, I brought the cool container to my mouth. Water spilled over my dry lips, tongue, and cheeks, cooling everything as it raced down my throat. I couldn’t taste even a hint of blood. It was delicious.

We make a good team, she said, taking the container back from me.

It seems like it, I replied. Her words made me feel warmer. Praise was hard to come by from their kind. I looked over to see her placing the water on the chest, the lid securely in place. That would keep any other dust from getting into it.

"I’ll flip you