Through the Never: a Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection Read online

  Table of Contents

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Epilogue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Through the Never

  a Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection

  Copyright © 2017 by Monica Corwin

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Contents

  Through the Never

  J.A. Culican

  Savior

  Savior

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  About the Author

  Brandon Barr

  Neurogenesis

  About Neurogenesis

  Neurogenesis

  About the Author

  Lucía Ashta

  Mowab Rider

  About Mowab Rider

  Mowab Rider

  About the Author

  Sarah K. L. Wilson

  Paint the Night

  About Paint the Night

  Paint the Night

  About the Author

  Frost Kay

  Amber Vial

  Amber Vial

  1. The beginning of the end

  2. Anxiety and booze don’t mix

  3. Stun guns, pirates, and puke, oh my

  4. Crazy? I was crazy once…

  About the Author

  R.L. Blalock

  The Fall of Endurance

  The Fall of Endurance

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  About the Author

  Debbie Cassidy and Richard Amos

  Across the Starlight Blue

  Across the Starlight Blue

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Epilogue

  About the Author

  JC Kang

  Dragon in Man’s Clothing

  About Dragon in Man’s Clothing

  Dragon in Man’s Clothing

  Craig Martelle

  The Outcast

  About The Outcast

  The Outcast

  About the Author

  Katherine Bogle

  The Blood Amulet

  About The Blood Amulet

  The Blood Amulet

  About the Author

  Tina Glasneck

  Dragon’s Awakening: Journey to Asgard

  Dragon’s Awakening: Journey to Asgard

  Preface

  1. Baldr, Asgard

  2. Nanna, Carthage, 183 BC

  3. Nanna, Asgard, the City

  4. Nanna, Breidablik—The Hall of Baldr

  5. Nanna, Breidablik—The Hall of Baldr

  6. Nanna, Gladsheim—the Asgard Gods’ Meeting Hall

  7. Baldr, Asgard Tavern

  8. Nanna, Breidablik—Baldr’s Hall

  9. Nanna, Breidablik—the Hall of Baldr

  10. Baldr—Breidablik—the Hall of Baldr

  11. Nanna, Breidablik—the Hall of Baldr

  12. Baldr, banks of the Ifing River

  13. Baldr, Breidablik — the Hall of Baldr

  14. Nanna, somewhere in the Myrkviðr Forest

  About the Author

  Sharolyn G. Brown

  Rodan’s Awakening

  Rodan’s Awakening

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  About the Author

  Through the Never

  Forge the journey. Blaze the path. Seize the adventure.

  If you’re ready to risk everything and follow powerful but flawed characters to new worlds, then this Fantasy and Science Fiction Anthology will leave you breathless with the thrill of the journey.

  Get ready to travel to travel THROUGH THE NEVER with brave characters who break free from familiar confines and launch themselves into the dangerous unknown as they seek new lives and race down pathways from which there is no return.

  From Earth to far-off galaxies to fantastic new realms, embark on fourteen exciting adventures in science fiction and fantasy where dangerous new worlds, epic quests, and heart-pounding adventures await.

  Explore the universe, experience the magic and live a thousand lives when you one-click today!

  Savior

  J.A. Culican

  Savior © 2017 Armitage & Culican

  * * *

  All rights reserved under the International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, places, characters and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to any actual persons, living or dead, organizations, events or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Warning: the unauthorized reproduction or distribution of this copyrighted work is illegal. Criminal copyright infringement, including infringement without monetary gain, is investigated by the FBI and is punishable by up to 5 years in prison and a fine of $250,000.

  Savior

  Morganna is a legend, the fiercest dragon slayer ever to live. Nothing can stop her, nothing that is but the truth. A truth that will change her life forever.

  A legend.

  I can bring a full-grown dragon down with a simple swipe of my sword. Men want me and women want to be me. But everything comes at a price. A price I just paid as I run for not only my life but the one I love, in the dead of night.

  Exiled over jealousy.

  My options are limited. I belong nowhere. The mountains with the dragons or the forest with the werewolves? Neither will accept me. But that won’t stop me, for I am Morganna.

  I am a legend.

  A companion novella to the Dragon Tamer series, full of dragons, werewolves and slayers by USA Today Bestselling authors Armitage & Culican.

  Chapter 1

  As I took one last look around my cottage, I could scarcely believe that I was never to see it again. The house I’d grown up in, the village that had been my home since the day I was born, the people I’d counted as friends and family. I had to leave them all.

  I purposely left my sword until last. None of this was real while my sword still stood against my bed where I always kept it, ready for the next fight. I picked it up and held it, feeling the weight of it. It was so familiar to me and I was glad that I would be allowed to take it with me.
It was the smallest of mercies on a day like today.

  My eyes were dry as I left the house, stepping out into the darkness. I was a famous warrior and even though there was no one around to see me leave, I wouldn’t allow myself a moment of weakness. Morganna never showed weakness! That’s how I got to where I was, by never showing fear to an enemy. Not that the people living in the cluster of small houses that made up the village of Drionas were my enemies–well, not all of them. I was one of them, almost a leader. I was respected and looked up to. At least I had been. Not anymore. Now I was a coward, leaving in the dark of night because I’d been told to by one of the village elders. I never thought my life would come to this.

  It didn’t take long to find the path leading away from the village. Even in the dark, I knew I’d find my way. My eyesight was perfect, even in the inky blackness. It was one of the reasons I was so good at what I did—slaying dragons!

  I had no clue where I was going. It was unlike me to not have a plan, but then I hadn’t been expecting the visit from Rocco two hours earlier. Rocco was a village elder, a fierce dragon slayer in his own right. One of the best. Except, as I found out tonight, ‘one of the best’ wasn’t good enough. He wanted to be the best dragon slayer in the village but that wasn’t possible while I was still around.

  I’d never taken him for the jealous type. What did he have to be jealous of? He had a wonderful family, he was well respected, and he could kill a dragon in his sleep. I guess you can never really tell with some people.

  When he’d knocked on my door, I’d invited him in for a cup of tea, assuming that he wanted to talk about next week’s dragon hunt.

  He didn’t stay long. Just long enough to tell me that he’d seen me with Xander and that in exchange for him keeping quiet, I should leave the village and never return.

  What choice did I really have? Xander was the love of my life and another village elder. He was also married with three children. Sure, I could have stayed and let the pieces fall where they may, but I couldn’t do that to him. I loved him too much. I loved him enough not to break up his family. He’d be thrown out of the village for having an affair. I afforded myself a little daydream of us both taking this journey together. His wife would eventually pick up the pieces and his kids would forget him in time, but I’d never be able to forgive myself. What had started as a little bit of fun had gotten out of hand and Rocco seeing us had given me the push I needed to end it. End it and escape any backlash. Xander would now be able to concentrate on his family.

  The path curved as it reached the village marker. I turned and took one last look at my home, but it was in complete darkness and there wasn’t anything to see. Clouds filled the sky, blocking out the moon and stars, leaving my parting view of my home as dark as the feeling in my heart.

  Rocco was going to tell the village that I had befriended a dragon. Of all the things he could come up with, that was the most ridiculous. Morganna, the best dragon slayer in living history, befriending a dragon? It was absurd. And yet, in the end it didn’t matter what he told the other villagers. I wouldn’t be there to defend myself. I should have killed him right then and there. I certainly could have. He was a magnificent warrior, but I had the edge and he knew it. But, just like with Xander, Rocco had children. A young boy and girl, neither older than five or six. However much I hated Rocco right now, I couldn’t leave their children without a father, no matter how much of a low-life he was. Why did it always come down to the children? I laughed out loud. Hearing my voice breaking the silence made me feel lonelier than ever. I’d never cared for children and yet here I was, running away to protect the kids of two different men. I knew the names and ages of all of Xander’s children, but Rocco’s were just a couple of nameless kids running around with toy swords and dirty knees. Why was I giving up my whole world just to protect them?

  “Maybe I’ve got more maternal feelings than I thought!” I whispered to myself, shaking my head. Maybe I was just going insane?

  The woodland that skirted the Triad Mountains thinned out the further I walked away from Drionas. I’d been walking over an hour and still didn’t know where I was headed. To the right were the Triad Mountains. I knew them well after years of hunting dragons in their peaks, but there was no place for me to live up there. Not unless I really did want to befriend a dragon. That would certainly be a turn up for the books, if I showed up in Drionas in a few days riding on the back of a dragon.

  I was feeling too sad to chuckle at the thought of it. Morganna, the greatest dragon slayer, riding a dragon. Like everything else that had happened that night, dragon riding was a ridiculous thought.

  Sick of wandering aimlessly, I found a rock to sit on to give me time to clear my head. I was usually so focused, so sure of what I was doing and where I was going. This aimlessness was alien to me.

  Taking a deep breath, I assessed my situation. Whichever way I looked at it, I was in a mess. Drionas was a tight knit community and as such, we didn’t travel much beyond its borders. In some ways it was nice, but in others, such as this situation, it meant that I knew no one and was woefully lacking in geographical knowledge.

  I knew, for example, that if I carried on walking in the same general direction I was already heading, I would hit the coast way past daybreak. I didn’t, however, know the names of any of the small towns and villages that populated that little bit of coastline. Living by the sea had its own appeal, but it wasn’t the type of environment I was familiar with. I needed trees and mountains and valleys. Climbing over the Triads would be difficult, so I made the decision to head north. I picked up my bag and sword and took the first fork in the road that would take me in that direction.

  The first fingers of sunshine were creeping into the sky as a man with a horse and cart drew up beside me. A cursory glance at his cart told me he was a merchant, more than likely on his way to market somewhere. In the back were rolled up rugs and carpets. Maybe it was lack of sleep or just so many years living in danger from the dragons, but my imagination took over. What if those carpets held bodies? They were certainly long enough. I gripped the handle of my sword tightly, ready to draw it in a split second if needed.

  “Good morning, miss. You look lost. Can I offer you a lift anywhere?”

  I exhaled, unaware that I’d been holding my breath. He was just stopping to help me. It wasn’t something I was used to. In my village I held a certain role: that of a woman who gave help instead of received it. “Thank you.” I climbed up and took the seat beside him. At closer quarters, he looked harmless enough and I felt foolish for thinking otherwise. I still kept my hand on my sword though. Those that lost focus were the ones that usually ended up killed first.

  “Where to?” He clicked and the horses resumed their steady trot along the cobbled road.

  “I don’t know. North.”

  “I’m going as far as the market in Fossville. That’s about an hour north of here. Will that do you?”

  I guess it would have to. “Thank you.”

  I’d never heard of Fossville, but if it had a market, it meant I could get breakfast there.

  The man talked the whole way there and I listened, not giving up any information about myself. The less people knew, the better. I didn’t want it getting back to Drionas where I was. I needed a clean break.

  When he asked me questions, I nodded my head or murmured uncommittedly, giving him only my name.

  He seemed content to talk about his work and family which suited me fine. When we arrived at Fossville, I gave him a couple of coins. He tried to argue but I insisted, though when I checked my coin purse later, I wished I had let him win. I’d left all my money in Drionas’s vault. In my haste to leave, I’d brought only my coin purse, which didn’t hold a lot. The money I had would pay for breakfast with maybe enough left to feed me for a week. After that, I would have to find a job pretty quickly.

  I bought the cheapest breakfast I could find—two eggs and a chunk of bread—and sat in the cheap-looking cafe to eat.


  Finding a job? It wasn’t going to be easy. In Drionas, I was a celebrated warrior. I’d saved the village so many times from dragons that the other villagers brought me gifts such as food and gold. I’d earned enough to live for multiple lifetimes and had put it in the central vault. It was as good as useless to me now. I had no other skills beyond slaying dragons. I couldn’t make clothes or fish. I took the last bite of my bread feeling more despondent than ever.

  I’d never not known what to do. I’d always been so sure of myself and here I was, moping around like a five-year-old that had lost his mommy. I took a deep breath and stood up. I wasn’t completely useless. I had my sword and the skill to use it. I would continue north and learn to feed myself. If I knew one thing, it was how to kill. Killing a rabbit or deer was bound to be easier than killing a dragon. At least neither of them breathed fire. I’d teach myself to hunt! As I walked through the market, I saw the merchant. I gave a wave, feeling much more cheerful, and he waved back. I was just about to walk past when I saw something that caught my eye on the next stall over. It was a crossbow. If I was going to hunt, I needed the right equipment. The stall sold all manner of weapons, including swords. None of them came close to my own sword but at least the prices were right. The crossbow would set me back nearly all of my money, but if I were to feed myself with it, it was a bargain. I even managed to get the weapon’s merchant to throw in a quiver of arrows for free.