Ever My Merlin (Book 3, My Merlin Series) Read online

  Ever My Merlin,

  Book 3, My Merlin Series

  by Priya Ardis

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  Table of Contents

  Copyright

  MY MERLIN SERIES – BOOK 3

  EVER MY MERLIN

  He was the right one, the fated one, but was he right for her?

  The end of the world. The day of reckoning. The final battle.

  In this modern-day Arthurian, it is a time of great strife for Arriane (aka Ryan) and Merlin (aka Matt) as they struggle to stem the flood of destruction unleashed upon the world. Their only hope rests in the one object that can restore their greatest ally: the Healing Cup.

  With every scrap of life hanging in the balance, Ryan must convince both friends and enemies that the key to survival rests in the plans of a sword-toting girl of only eighteen. She must reconcile a fifteen-hundred-year rivalry between two brothers, and be ruthless enough to break a heart—and a life—in the process. And at some point, she really needs to get herself to Prom.

  Complete the circle in the last chapter of the My Merlin Series. A blend of Arthurian legend and Greek mythology, My Merlin weaves the mysteries of the past with modern-day adventure, supernatural creatures, high school, and romance.

  Copyright

  Copyright 2012 by Priyanka Ardis

  Ever My Merlin.

  Cover art by Claudia McKinney, Phatpuppy Art.

  Cover model is Jess Truscott.

  Cover design by Kathleen Baldwin

  All Rights Returned to the Author

  All Rights Reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical without the author's express written permission. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book via the Internet or via any other means without permission is prohibited.

  This novel is a work of fiction. Any references to real people or real locations are used fictitiously. Any references to historical events are used fictitiously. Characters, names, organizations, and events portrayed in this novel are either products of the author's imagination or used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual incidents or persons is coincidental.

  The author acknowledges the trademarked status and trademark owners of various products referenced in this work of fiction, which have been used without permission. The publication/use of these trademarks is not authorized, associated with, or sponsored by the trademark owners.

  Published by: Ink Lion Books 2012

  Ink Lion Books

  ISBN-13: 9780984833948

  Version 2012.11.01

  Table Of Contents

  MY MERLIN SERIES – BOOK 3

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  PROLOGUE

  CHAPTER 1 – ENDINGS

  CHAPTER 2 – THE BARGAIN

  CHAPTER 3 – THE LIBRARY

  CHAPTER 4 – COLD SUMMER

  CHAPTER 5 – LAST OF THE ROMANS-BATTLE OF AD DECIMUM

  CHAPTER 6 – GARDEN OF EDEN

  CHAPTER 7 – IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF ALEXANDER, SON OF ZEUS

  CHAPTER 8 – LOVE ME, LOVE ME NOT

  CHAPTER 9 – GODS OF WATER

  CHAPTER 10 – KRONOS’S FURY

  CHAPTER 11 – THE GOOD WITCH

  CHAPTER 12 – ACTON-CONCORD HIGH

  CHAPTER 13 – THE TEMPEST

  CHAPTER 14 – PROM

  CHAPTER 15 – OF KINGS AND MEN

  CHAPTER 16 – I WAIT FOR YOU

  CHAPTER 17 – TELL ME YOU LOVE ME

  CHAPTER 18 – THE LION AND THE TIGER

  CHAPTER 19 – FAITH IN WESTMINSTER

  CHAPTER 20 – FOREVER AND EVER

  CHAPTER 21 – BEGINNINGS

  CHAPTER 22 – CAMELOT

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  Other Books by Priya Ardis

  Copyright

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  It’s the last book in the series, so there are a lot of people to thank. First, I’m thrilled to have been supported by my wonderful readers, bloggers, friends, and family! Those of you who have contacted me through the various social sites, I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been picked up by your enthusiastic words and quick note! Those of you who’ve spread the word about the series via your websites, reviews, and by simply telling friends—I’m floored and very grateful!

  A big thank you to my family for putting up with my schedule when I should have been watching movies/at the beach/generally not in front of a computer (I blame the muse!).

  A huge thank you to CM at Phatpuppy for her wonderful art and for going out of her way to ensure I was happy with everything—I am! KB, who’s been so wonderfully supportive, for her awesome, awesome, layout design—thank you!

  A shout out to my wonderful editors – Teri “the Editing Fairy” G. and Cassie MC—without whom this manuscript would be a mess. Thank you for working your schedules around mine! WM, thanks for pitching in, though you didn’t have a choice. Another big shout out to MM, the lone voice of reason, couldn’t do this without you!

  PROLOGUE

  PROLOGUE

  I helped my brother up the stairs of our small cottage. We were playing in the woods. He followed me everywhere, but I didn’t mind. He had small hands; mine were big. I was the big brother. I would always take care of him.

  I turned the handle that latched the back door. Behind me, my brother stumbled on the stairs. I turned back around and caught him before he could fall. The door opened a crack. I helped my brother up the stairs leading into a small storeroom. Across the dirt-floored room, another three steps led up to the cottage.

  The Lady sat at a round table and chopped, chopping a potato. I don’t know how she managed to hold on to the precious bit of food. Crops liked to grow for her. I’d overheard more than one desperate villager whisper about our bounty, yet no one ever tried to steal or wrest it from us.

  Maybe I did know why. One time I took a few leftover bits of food and tried to trade it for a sword. I never saw her so angry. Her glowing green eyes took the breath from my body. It wasn’t until I saw dark spots in my vision that her eyes snapped back to normal and my breath swooped back into my lungs. I knew I almost met my death that day, but in the end, I was simply admonished for possibly exposing us to outsiders.

  I was about to fling the back door open when the voice of a man stopped me. We never had a man in our cottage before. We never had any visitors in our cottage before. The Lady was our guardian—I didn’t dare call her mother—for as long as I could remember. I had little recollection of anyone before her. Only the three of us—the Lady, my little brother, and me.

  “Are they here?” the man asked.

  “No, son. They’re out in the woods.” The Lady cut another slice of the potato.

  I took a few steps into the cool darkness of the storeroom. I could see her above me. My brother started to make a gurgling sound. I put a finger to my lips to tell him to shush. He nodded and repeated the gesture, delighting at the game.

  “The elder takes care of his brother well,” she said.

  The giant of a man sat down in a chair across the table from her. He wore the uniform of a Roman soldier—a breastplate of unusually shiny metal, a leather skirt, and leg armor. His cloak was an imperial purple. On a bare-muscled arm he wore a gold armband in the shape of a fish. Sandals covered his feet. A gold crown sat atop dark-blond hair with a winking green gemstone. “Do I hear censure in your tone, Mother?”

  “An observation, Poseidon,” she said.

  “No one calls me by that name anymore, Mother.” The man paused. “Our time is ne
ar. You cannot delay much more. We have already lingered too long. Our father has demanded our departure and he is right. We have other places to be.”

  The Lady continued to cut the potato placidly. “Yet, I am not done. The boys need me.”

  “Father is not happy with you. What you’ve done—”

  “I’ve saved this world.”

  “At what cost? You’ve brought a plague upon this land. The pandemic will take half their lives in exchange—”

  The Lady said harshly, “Better than every single life. There is always a price to be paid when you cheat time. Besides, I will not leave them completely defenseless. I have a plan.”

  “Oh, yes.” The man laughed. “The sword.”

  “The world will see a dark age, but our garden will flourish again, despite our abandonment.”

  “It will not be abandoned. Father realizes our time here is at an end. The world has grown, and in time, they will gain their own power. Anyhow, it was not his choice. It was written in the stars. You have only delayed it. The universe will not rest until it finds a balance. Kronos’s Fury will rebound.”

  “I will not give up without a fight.” Chop. She cut the potato in two neat halves.

  In the storeroom, I winced at the hard sound, yet my heart swelled. The Lady would protect my brother and me, no matter the cost.

  “They can save themselves, Mother,” the man said.

  I didn’t like him.

  She answered. “Your father doesn’t understand. Sometimes when you see too far, you can forget to look at what is most near. Fate must be helped along, my son. We must make sure the boys are protected. They will be needed.”

  “One boy, Mother. There was only meant to be one,” the man replied. “I do not know how those idiot wizards somehow managed to cause the conception of two.”

  In the cold blackness, my grip tightened on my brother. I really didn’t like this man.

  “You can only leave the gift to one, Mother,” he continued. “We do not have the strength for more. Who will you choose?”

  “I have already chosen.” The Lady moved on to a new potato. With one clean slice, she cleaved it open. “However, the two are tied so closely together. This will be hard for them—”

  “You orchestrated their conception for this purpose.” The man’s tone hardened. His green eyes almost glowed as he watched the Lady. “My brothers and I were close once also. You must do what is right as we did.”

  “I am well aware what is at stake.” The Lady paused in her cutting and laid down the knife. “We must all do what is necessary, but it does not mean we should forget our hearts. Are you and your brothers ready to do your part?”

  The man stared at the Lady, his mother. I wasn’t sure what they were talking about. I knew this moment could change everything. The Lady looked steadily at her son. Finally, he sighed. “You know I would do anything for you. So will Jupiter.”

  The Lady smiled and picked up the knife again. “And Hades?”

  The man shook his head. “Pluto does not agree, but is too busy to be a problem. Jupiter has gone to see Father, but you know as well as I that Father will not part with the apples.”

  “It is merely a ruse,” the Lady said. “Your father doesn’t know about the ones I sent Hercules to steal.”

  The man paused. “Are you absolutely certain you want to do this? Father has strict rules against playing with two worlds.”

  “Sometime you have to break the rules to save what is most important.”

  “And the other way—”

  “It is too risky,” she said dismissively, with a wave of the knife.

  The man sighed. “I hope you are correct about this boy, Mother. So much hinges on it. I will go to my island after I leave you. I must give them their final instructions.”

  “You will not be the least bit sorry to leave your son?”

  The man’s face blanched. “We always knew this day would come. Triton is of this world. He belongs here.”

  She looked down at the slices of potato. “It will be as difficult for you to let go of the boy as it was for me to let go of you.”

  “I survived.”

  “Vivane also reminds me a good deal of you, but he is more vulnerable. He is of this world. He has you in him, but he is not ours. Remember that. Teach him to be a warrior, but do not break him. You must return him in seven years’ time. Merlin’s training will be completed by then as well.”

  “Triton knows what he must do,” the man said.

  In the pit of the storeroom, I stood frozen to the spot. I made an effort to breathe. She was giving me away. She was keeping my brother, but she was giving me away.

  My brother would be alone.

  A jagged sword of anger surged from inside a deep pit—toward a mother I could barely remember, a father who’d never been there, and the Lady. I remembered the day the Lady came into our hut. My mother cried when she told me to be strong. She told me to always look after my brother. Then, she took a bag of gold coins from the Lady and let me go. The only one who cared about me was my brother. I knew that. And if I cared as much about him, I knew what I had to do.

  My hands fisted, a physical reaction to the decision. They squeezed the small fingers laying innocently in mine.

  “Vee,” Merlin protested.

  The day I was dreading had finally come. I looked down at him, his round baby face and big eyes. The Lady wanted him. I knew I had no choice. We never had a choice. Neither of us.

  We’d been betrayed.

  With a sharp breath, I let go of his hand. Stomping away from him, I went up the stairs. As usual, Merlin ran after me. His little legs stumbled on the first step. I resisted the urge to help him. I kept climbing.

  The bright, green eyes of the Lady widened when she saw me at the threshold. “Vivane?”

  Behind me, I heard Merlin fall. A thud sounded as his back hit the dirt floor. An angry wail filled the air. I didn’t turn around. He had to figure it out on his own now. He had to be strong. He had to learn to stop counting on me.

  The Lady stood up in a hurry. “Vivane, your brother!”

  My name wasn’t Vivane. I wasn’t needed as an older brother.

  I looked at her… I looked at the man. He watched me with steady green eyes, the exact same shade as the Lady’s.

  I declared, “I am Vane.”

  And I was alone.

  CHAPTER 1 – ENDINGS

  CHAPTER 1

  ENDINGS

  Forever. I ached for it. I hurt for it in places that didn’t have a name. I wanted it. I wanted it for my friends. I wanted it from my family. The world. Like anyone, I imagined some kind of forever for myself—whether good or bad—then, it was snatched out from under me.

  The ghostly faces of seven billion people shimmered in a wall of water that stretched from earth all the way up to the heavens. As I faced the giant wave, I made a wish. I wished to change my fate. I wished to live.

  How had I gotten here?

  One word—tsunami. Wave after giant wave of ocean turbulence devastated the coastlines across the world. New Zealand. Australia. Hawaii. California. Indonesia. India. Five volcanoes started it all. Erupting simultaneously, they threw the whole world into a nightmarish scenario. Relief agencies that were strained dealing with just one hotspot struggled to cover five. However, it wasn’t just the hotspots that were impacted. The effects bounded out into a radius of pure chaos.

  In Hawaii, the Wizard Council summoned the wizards who lived there, a surprisingly high number, to stand on the rocky cliffs and push back the onslaught of water. As the underwater volcano, Loihi, spewed out of control, it gave birth to a new island, a birth that wasn’t supposed to happen for another hundred thousand years. The vassal of the Earth Shaker had woken. The Fisher King, and I’d woken him.

  I was halfway across the world from Hawaii. My legs were rooted on a flat, concrete rooftop, at the top of a square, white building, in a row of identical white buildings. Other wizards lined up beside me, evenly
spread across fifty or so roofs. We faced the ocean, which, just a few days ago, had been a haven of tranquility and peace for the city behind us.

  I couldn’t see the beach anymore. There was no beach. Wave after wave assaulted the shoreline, overrunning the mile-long expanse of sand that stretched from the buildings to the water’s edge.

  Squatty steel and concrete buildings, only two stories high, were the last barricade as the water relentlessly tried to inundate the crowded metropolis of Chennai, India.

  Its vibrant, noisy city streets, usually packed with three-wheeled rickshaws, bicycles, and cars, were abandoned and silent. Millions of people, a rainbow of brightly colored cotton and spice, had to be evacuated from their homes in the wake of the tsunami alerts. The blare of sirens sounded ceaselessly. Somewhere behind me the static-laden voice of a radio announcer described the panic-stricken chaos caused by the mass exodus.

  On the rooftop, Matt took my hand.

  I looked up into his tired amber eyes, somewhere deep inside a battle-scarred soul, their brilliant depths banked with faint power. Lelex’s torture still lingered, and now I was asking for more. My fingers intertwined with his. He inclined his head in tacit support, unruly, auburn curls brushing his forehead.

  Grey took up my left. After him, Gia stood holding hands with Blake. The four of us, tied together by our common bond as Candidates to pull Excalibur from the stone, faced a horror from which only the sword could save us. In my free hand, I gripped it. It was King Arthur’s sword once, a long time ago. Now, it was mine. Its power hummed in my hand, and sweat filled my palm. It was ready. But was I?

  In my free hand, I gripped Excalibur. It was King Arthur’s sword once, a long time ago. Now, it was mine. Its power hummed in my hand, and sweat filled my palm. It was ready. But was I?

  Earlier this morning, Matt, the gang, and I left Greece to fly to Indonesia. Three volcanoes had exploded, spewing smoke, ash, and lava across the island chain. In the northern region of Sumatra, the Toba caldera was the site of a supervolcano. The eruption had caused a massive global climate change about eighty thousand years ago. Only two hundred years ago in 1815, Mount Tambora’s eruption, a nearby stratovolcano, instigated a volcanic winter, resulting in a worldwide famine that reached all the way to North America.