Page 1 of Shadows of Fate

Prologue

Four millennia ago,before men—there were the three Fates. The Goddess of life and fertility, Evika. The Goddess of wisdom and war, Eirdis. Then the Goddess of dreams and death, Ernesia.

Kostbare was one of the many land masses they created together, blessing the humans there with crops, sun, and the ability to feel. Eventually, the humans created their own kingdom in Kostbare. Men took turns ruling over the masses until King Cyprian began his ruling. A human man, at least in the beginning of his story. Most remembered him as a fair, just ruler, like his predecessors—a long line of successful men in his family.

However, in his thirty-fourth year of ruling Kostbare, something changed. The Fate, Ernesia, created vampires. The vampires traveled far and wide, making new homes across the country of Kostbare. The creatures who thrived under the moon and drank the blood of his human subjects were hunted down for many years, before eventually, a vampire named Bertram was able to enter the castle under the claim of desiring unity between their people. He infiltrated the king’s court, unbeknownst to the court who he truly was—a traitor.

Bertram was part of the vampire rebellion and was sent on one very strict mission—to turn King Cyprian. He was successful, and while the vampires viewed this as a win in their favor, they soon learned it wasn’t as successful as they hoped.

The power and immortality that Cyprian earned in his new life corrupted him through and through. He brought vampires to power and killed humans for fun—making them slaves, torturing them for sport, and raping men and women who refused him. Humans were turned into cattle, walking blood bags, a meaningless source of fun to Cyprian and his court.

This angered the Fates, for they had blessed not only the humans, but the vampires as well. They blessed them with long life, the ability to procreate with humans, and the tools to help create an even better life. While some did just that, others, like Cyprian, abused these gifts.

A small group of four vampires started meeting in secret when they realized the human population of Kostbare was dwindling. They prayed to the Fates hoping for help, in a final effort to save their lives. To their surprise, the Fates answered them. The four of them joined together and overthrew Cyprian, pushing him into the final death. Together they were able to bring peace across the kingdom.

When the question of who would rule came to pass, they agreed that Kostbare was too big for one individual to rule on his own, so they created the four courts. Each was named after their Fates-given powers, separating Kostbare into four equal sections.

Finnian created the Court of Ravens.

Ellis created the Court of Wolves.

Drustan created the Court of Ice.

Elric created the Court of Shadows.

They ruled in peace and harmony for many centuries—restoring balance. Giving humans rights and protection. Improving technologies and laws. Building homes and cities.

As their powers grew, each of them was blessed with a soul-bonded mate, given to them by the Fates. With love and power, they had children who grew up with more power. Once their children were old enough, they’d passed over the rulership.

This worked for many, many years.

Until slowly, something… or someone, set out to corrupt it.

Chapter1

A Somber Affair

Silvana

Walking through the streets of Coalfell was a somber affair, to say the least. The pathways were wet and dreary, and the summer air started to die down in favor of an autumn breeze. The buildings were dilapidated and falling into disarray; the citizens were even worse off than the buildings, though.

Coalfell was a small town that lay on the border of the Court of Wolves and the Court of Shadows. Though it was considered to be under the Court of Wolves territory as far as a map was concerned. The local coven in charge of Coalfell sent me on this lovely adventure tonight. So, the sad humans who resided here were of no concern to me. I was there for one very specific reason, and it wasn’t to waste time feeling pity for the sad humans living here.

I looked up toward the sky, the moon was full and bright, lighting up the streets with her gentle light perfectly for me. Almost as if it were just as bright and happy as I was about how the night was turning out. As if it also knew how tonight would end.

I’d easily found my target for my assignment, which meant I would be able to leave this shit town that much quicker.

The Crassodon Coven had reached out to Cedar, my best friend, and tasked us with finding a vampire named Elias. My stomach had turned at the mere thought of his crimes after they dropped the parchment in my hands. I would’ve done this assignment just for the sheer joy of it, but payment was always appreciated too—a lady had to eat after all. It didn’t help that I also enjoyed luxury when available.

They’d asked me to have it done within a moon cycle. That was at the beginning of the night before—needless to say, I was motivated to have it finished much quicker than their given deadline.

As I came upon the small shack Elias called a home, I was thankful I arrived before he’d gone out hunting. I wasn’t in the mood to coddle a scared girl who had just learned not all vampires were decent creatures—Iwasin the mood to kill evil males who took advantage of females who couldn’t protect themselves, though. My specialty for the last one hundred and ten years—give or take a bit of time.

I smiled to myself at the thought. Yeah, maybe I was a bit off in the head for enjoying that part of my job so much, but honestly? The only person I cared about was Cedar, and he loved my chaos. Especially if it involved my knives in the balls of shitty males.

Walking up to the door, I didn’t bother knocking, I just pushed my way in. Predators like him didn’t deserve common decency after all. His hovel was a compact space consisting of a living area with a couch, a kitchen, and a toilet in the corner. There was a staircase near the back corner of the kitchen, but I didn’t have a need for that.

It didn’t take me long to find him. Elias was passed out on an old, soiled sofa that may have once been cerulean in color but was now more dark nut brown. It was probably a nice piece of furniture before Elias took ownership.

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