Star spear sun serpent s.., p.1
Star Spear: Sun Serpent Saga, Volume 2, page 1
Star Spear
Sun Serpent Saga Vol. 2
Geneva Monroe
Star Spear by Geneva Monroe
Copyright © 2023 by Geneva Monroe
Digital ISBN: 978-1-960352-03-3
Published by Purple Phoenix Press LLC
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except as permitted by U.S. copyright law.
The story, all names, characters, and incidents portrayed in this production are fictitious. No identification with actual persons (living or deceased), places, buildings, and products is intended or should be inferred.
Published by Purple Phoenix Press
Edited by Alessia Quaranta and Reanna Breaux
Book Cover by JV Arts
Illustrations by Natalia Barashkova, k_yu, Igor Vitkovsky, Morphart Creation, T Studio, Geneva Monroe
Map Illustration by Geneva Monroe
Author Portrait Photography by C.D. Redman
Content Warning
Star Spear is a work of adult fantasy and not intended for minors. It contains scenes that may be distressing to some people, including strong language, graphic violence, death, themes of grief and loss, torture, attempted assault, discussion of rape, and explicit sexual content.
Contents
Star Spear Playlist
Pronunciation Guide
Map of Venterra
Dedication
1. Chapter 1
2. Chapter 2
3. Chapter 3
4. Chapter 4
5. Chapter 5
6. Chapter 6
7. Chapter 7
8. Chapter 8
9. Chapter 9
10. Chapter 10
11. Chapter 11
12. Chapter 12
13. Chapter 13
14. Chapter 14
15. Chapter 15
16. Chapter 16
17. Chapter 17
18. Chapter 18
19. Chapter 19
20. Chapter 20
21. Chapter 21
22. Chapter 22
23. Chapter 23
24. Chapter 24
25. Chapter 25
26. Chapter 26
27. Chapter 27
28. Chapter 28
29. Chapter 29
30. Chapter 30
31. Chapter 31
32. Chapter 32
33. Chapter 33
34. Chapter 34
35. Chapter 35
36. Chapter 36
37. Chapter 37
38. Chapter 38
39. Chapter 39
40. Chapter 40
41. Author's Note
42. Acknowledgements
This book is dedicated to everyone who listened
to my self-doubts,
and refused to accept them.
Chapter 1
1 Year Ago
I swirled the amber liquid around my glass, watching it coat the rim.
“That’s the ace to you, Cal.”
Tilting my head to the side, I lifted the corner of my cards up. Of course, he had to lay a fucking ace when all I had were single digits and not a spade among them. Godsdamn him and his astounding luck. Whatever demon he struck a deal with to get his never-ending streak of good fortune needed to swing by my rooms sometime because Mal had an unbelievable ability to call all the right cards to him. All the right everything was always coming to him. The sour taste of envy coated the inside of my mouth, making my tongue thick and hard to swallow.
I flicked my gaze up to Mal giving him my best crooked smile. His corn silk blonde locks hung low, shielding his eyes from me and revealing nothing. Fucker.
“What’s the matter?” he asked with a smug laugh. “You aren’t folding your hand already, are you?”
“No. I didn’t say that.” I leaned forward, adding a golden coin to the growing pile at the center of the table. The crown pressed into its surface glinted in the lamplight, mocking me. I’d growl if it didn’t give my hand away, opting instead to down the contents of my glass in one smooth swallow.
“Fine, I’ll take your money.” Mal threw back his head with a laugh, and leaned against the arm of his chair.
Bouncing red curls against a sea of mahogany skin made their way around the edge of the bar, catching my eye.
“Lucy!” I lifted my glass in acknowledgement, meeting the azure eyes of the barmaid. “Hit us up, darling. My glass is dryer than the Dead Lands.”
She nodded, tossing the ringlets over her shoulder. She was pretty, in an ordinary way. Which was exactly what I was in the mood for after the night we’d had. Like many people from the Isles, her coloring reminded me of a cool autumn day. Light rolled off of her heaving breasts. Her corset was only loosely tied from her last hurriedly finished tryst.
She walked over to us, her bare thighs parting her skirts with every step. She sat the bottle on the table, then unnecessarily leaned over to pull the stopper. Amusement tugged up the corner of her lips. We’d dropped our finery before heading to this particular corner of Innesvale, but I was sure she knew who we were.
“I’m starting to think you’re only drinking so much to get me to keep coming back here to refill your glass.” Her watery blue eyes sparkled down at me.
I brushed my hand forward, slipping it along the slit in her skirt and drifting my fingertips across the back of her knees. She breathed a coquettish giggle that fooled no one. Gods, I was bored.
“And if I am?” Her playful smile shifted to something promising and wicked. In response, I lifted my hand further up the back of her leg.
Lucy draped an arm around my shoulder and leaned across my chest to my opposite ear. Her carefully calculated stance placed her décolletage in a position that was practically daring me to take a bite. At least this little apple wouldn’t be trying to snag my crown from my pillow while I did. She might not be the most intriguing of women, but at least Lucy was upfront with her intentions.
“Then, I keep the good stuff upstairs.” She drew my earlobe into her mouth and raked her teeth over its surface. Releasing me, she added, “There’s a door to the upstairs apartment around the back.”
I slid my hand over her ass, giving it a not so gentle squeeze, then removed my hand from under her skirt.
Walking her fingers along Mal’s shoulder, she added, “You going to join us, too?”
Mal shifted uncomfortably in his seat, “No… No… not this time.”
“Pity.” Her ruby lips pouted, then, with a wink and a sashay of her hips, she walked back to the bar, leaving behind the bottle of brandy.
Mal picked it up and refilled my glass before topping off his own. “You’re unbelievable.”
I tipped back the brandy, rolling the burning liquid around my mouth. “How so?”
“You could have any of the ladies at court. At the Prophecy Ball, Lady Bernadette was literally throwing herself at your feet. The entire line of this year’s debutantes were falling over themselves to get you to dance with them.”
“I don’t want them,” I groaned. “I’m done with the court. All they do is try to please you.”
Mal rolled his eyes. “Yeah, why would you want someone to please you?”
“No. Not like that. Every one of them is a complete fraud. They all act exactly how they think I want them to act. Not that anybody bothers enough to find out what I actually desire. They all know the expectation is for me to marry after I take the crown. The only thing those women want is a nice shiny tiara. The way they fawn over me is disgusting. Honestly, fucking them is only one step up from masturbation.” I sighed and pinched the bridge of my nose to fight off the coming migraine that happened anytime I thought too long about my ascension.
“You know what you are?”
I raised my eyebrows at him. “I suppose you’re about to tell me.”
“You’re the Calico Cat.”
“Like, the children’s rhyme?”
“You just can’t be satisfied with the rat, so you spend your time chasing the mice.”
I waved him off. “It’s not like that.”
“It is exactly like that, CALico.”
“You don’t get it. You can leave the Floating Palace anytime. You can choose what you do and when. You don’t have to worry about answering to anyone, except maybe Ferrus.”
Mal’s face drained of color at the mention of the old dragon. His eyes, which were just so full of joy, darkened completely.
“What is it?” I leaned forward in my chair, resting my arms on the table. “Mal?”
He shook his head, like trying to shake away whatever thought had just clouded his vision. Then he topped his glass to the brim with the remnants of the bottle and downed the lot in one long draft.
“It’s nothing,” he said with a cough, wiping at the corner of his mouth with the back of his sleeve.
“Ok… I’d believe that if you hadn’t just drank a fifth of brandy before saying it.”
“It’s Ferrus.”
“Ferrus?”
“I can’t believe I’m telling you this.” He ran his hands through his hair and then gripped the back of his neck. “He’s been showing me some truly terrible things, Cal. It used to be that he’d only come to me once or twice a year. But… but ever since my last visit to Kraav, I keep having the same repeat drea m. I’ve been having it for months. It’s the only thing I’ve seen in my dreams since the last time I brought him our offerings.”
“I mean. How bad can it be? They’re just dreams.”
Mal shook his head, refusing to look at me. “These aren’t just dreams. He’s planning something, something truly terrible.”
I scoffed. “Who, the dragon? He hasn’t left the mountain in over five thousand years. What can he possibly do from his lair?”
“He keeps showing me wave after wave of death. A thick cloud of smoke rolls out from Mt. Kraav and swallows Innesvale, then crosses the sea to Suman, the ice fields of the North, the Bullseye. It covers all of Venterra in a blanket of twisting shadows. It’s so thick you can’t breathe. You can’t see. You can only choke. Then… the screaming starts. First, it’s just a single woman. She wails in this pitch that sends lightning shooting through your head. Once the blood is pouring from your ears, she’s joined by a chorus of cries. They raise and roar until the deafening sound rattles your bones and splits the earth. The entire world screaming at once.” Mal’s voice cracked, his hands beginning to tremble. “And when the shadow creeps back into the mountain once more, all that is left are bleached white bones. Bones of men and women, mothers holding their children, priests praying at altars… kings sitting on thrones.” His eyes drilled into me like spears of ice. “All of Venterra, dead. Everyone.”
I blinked at him. What did he expect me to say to that? Thank the gods it was just a dream. A wave that kills all of Venterra — is impossible. Nothing, not even a dragon, has that scope. If Mal thought there was any truth to these dreams, then it was because they’d driven him mad.
His stormy eyes were wide. They trembled with the fear I could see had shaken him to his core.
“Well fuck… at least I won’t have to keep fending off Lady Bernadette’s advances.” I laughed, tipping back the remnants of my glass.
Mal’s face went stark, then, just as quickly, twisted into a scowl. “You’re a dick. You know that?”
“Come off it, Mal. It’s just a dream, but extra points for creativity.”
“You’re not hearing me. This is real. Ferrus is a real threat to Venterra. If we don’t do something, there will be nothing and no one left to mourn its remains.”
I sighed, then leaned forward. “And what do you propose? That we kill Ferrus? We go running back to Mt. Kraav, and then what? Do you even know how to kill a dragon?”
“I’m not sure. There’s this crystal shard. Maybe we could—”
A breathy, disbelieving laugh slipped from me, and Mal’s brows furrowed with stern indignation.
“I will figure something out.”
“Or perhaps your dreams are just dreams. Venterra has been at peace for centuries. The dragons have slept for millennia. There is no reason for one to come out of his slumber and wipe the world clean.” Standing up, I threw my cards down, displaying my obviously losing hand. Then, gesturing at the pile of coins in the middle of the table, I added, “You win.”
“Cal, wait.” He stretched forward, grabbing at me.
I clapped him on the back. “Relax, Mal. Go get laid and try to remember that there’s more to life than our nightmares.”
I lifted my chin, catching Lucy’s gaze. “Or at least that’s my plan.”
“That’s not a solution.”
“No, it’s not. But it’s better than the alternative.”
Chapter 2
The Present
Wind whipped at the lines above us, and the spray of seawater misted my face. With the back of my hand, I brushed away the drops of water clinging to my lashes.
“Bein, take us out,” Captain Morgan Sangrior called to the large man standing at the helm. She quickly ascended the stairs to join him. Bein dwarfed her petite form, looking even larger as he raised his hands to make a massive swell of water push up from the dock. The ship rocked, surfing the crest of the wave as it rolled out of the bay.
I lurched forward, reaching out my hand for something to steady myself. Cal wrapped his arms around me. I gave in to the sensation, letting his strength support me—if only for a second before pulling away. The tensing muscles pressed against me rebelled at letting go. Nevertheless, I stepped away from him. His fingers trailed down my arm as I moved from his grasp. I felt their longing presence hanging in the air between us, like the ghost of what might have been.
This was not something we were doing. Cal was not saving me, holding me, not going to be doing anything with me. He spent the past weeks feeding me lies and keeping the very core of who I was a secret. I’d wanted nothing more than knowing I wasn’t alone in this world. One tiny flame to hold on to while I was drowning in the darkness of my grief. That was all I wanted, and he’d denied me that. No, he wouldn’t get the satisfaction of feeling me pressed against him ever again.
The hiss of unfurling sails mingled with the sounds of sloshing water and the ship’s crew. The sound of Rei’s laughter drifted over the roar of the waves crashing against the sapphire hull. She stood with a single arm draped over Morgan’s shoulder, her fingers dipping playfully beneath the hem of the captain’s tunic.
Well, at least she’s happy.
A blonde-haired man approached the helm beside Bein. He raised his hands, sending an intense rush of air to fill the sails. Immediately, the dragon shaped hull sliced through the moon-crested water. Two more Wind Singers joined the bridge. With a single push, the ship rocketed into the open ocean.
The sudden change in inertia threw me into Cal, the force toppling us both to the deck. As we fell, Cal wrapped his arms around me, letting his body cushion the blow. We ended up sprawled on the deck, our bodies tangled around each other. His amber eyes were bright with amusement. Our position was startlingly similar to how we met; on a different day, and a different time when he caught me stumbling. I never stumbled, but the universe, it would seem, had a sense of humor.
For one fraction of a moment, I forgot the pain of losing everything from my heart to my father. I ran my hand up his arm, taking advantage of the way circumstance had dropped me, once again, into his arms. Rei’s shadow blotted out the moonlight bathing us.
“You know, they have cabins for that.” She winked at me.
What was I doing? Why was I fondling the sexy curve of his arm when I should be sticking him with the pointy end of something sharp? Falling into our old rhythm was too easy, literally.
I scrambled away from him, but not before Cal trailed his hands down my legs. “You’re not funny,” I said, straightening my shirt and scowling at Rei.
“I dunno…” She flicked her eyes over to Cal. “It’s a little funny. Besides, I told you, the moment you declared you were done with him, you’d fall right into his arms.” She lifted her hand in a stage whisper. “And look, there you were—in his arms.”
Heat spread up my neck, and despite the dark night, I knew I wasn’t merely blushing anymore. My entire body felt like a bright red beacon of embarrassed light.
Cal ignored Rei, but his eyes trailed over me as he ambled to the railing. “Of course, Morgan has both sea and wind singers on board. That explains why her ship is always outrunning our patrols.”
“I’d be willing to bet that her entire crew is one or the other.” Xoc moved out of the shadow of the mast to take up a spot beside us at the railing.
The black ocean smoothed beneath the ship, quickly leaving the shores of Suman and the carnage we’d wrought far behind us. The wind tossed my hair, and I closed my eyes to the freedom of the open ocean. The chaos and heartache grew smaller by the second. Ahead of us laid only new possibilities.
One by one, the others drifted into the ship, leaving only Cal and I looking out over the wing carved into the dragon hull.
“There’s nothing like the ocean at night.”
Moonlight glistened off the waves of his auburn hair as the wind tousled them about. If not for the full moon, they would almost look black, nothing like the gold when he showed me the truth of who he was—what he was. His eyes, on the other hand, were ringed with it. They’d had that golden hue since we were at the university, never fully returning to their rich chocolate color. I wondered if that was because he was keeping his emotions open to me or if what had occurred between us had rattled his control.
