Surrender catalyst moon.., p.1
Surrender (Catalyst Moon #4), page 1
Lauren L. Garcia
Catalyst Moon: Surrender
Book Four
Copyright © 2020 by Lauren L. Garcia
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.
This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
Lauren L. Garcia asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.
Content warning: substance abuse.
Please note that this is the fourth book in a series. If this is your first foray into my world, I highly recommend starting with Book One.
Check the back of the book for more information about the world of Catalyst Moon, including a character list and glossary.
The Catalyst Moon saga:
Incursion (Catalyst Moon - Book 1)
Breach (Catalyst Moon - Book 2)
Storm (Catalyst Moon - Book 3)
Surrender (Catalyst Moon - Book 4) <—you are here
Sacrifice (Catalyst Moon - Book 5)
First edition
This book was professionally typeset on Reedsy
Find out more at reedsy.com
For Fred, who said “open your eyes.”
Contents
Author’s Note
ONE
TWO
THREE
FOUR
FIVE
SIX
SEVEN
EIGHT
NINE
TEN
ELEVEN
TWELVE
THIRTEEN
FOURTEEN
FIFTEEN
SIXTEEN
SEVENTEEN
EIGHTEEN
NINETEEN
TWENTY
TWENTY-ONE
TWENTY-TWO
TWENTY-THREE
TWENTY-FOUR
TWENTY-FIVE
TWENTY-SIX
TWENTY-SEVEN
TWENTY-EIGHT
TWENTY-NINE
THIRTY
THIRTY-ONE
THIRTY-TWO
THIRTY-THREE
THIRTY-FOUR
THIRTY-FIVE
THIRTY-SIX
THIRTY-SEVEN
THIRTY-EIGHT
THIRTY-NINE
FORTY
The world of Catalyst Moon
Acknowledgements
About the Author
Author’s Note
Content warning: substance abuse.
Please note that this is the fourth book in a series. If this is your first foray into my world, I highly recommend starting with Book One: Incursion.
Check the back of the book for more information about the world of Catalyst Moon, including a character list and glossary.
Join my mailing list for freebies, new releases, and other fun stuff! https://laloga.com/newsletter
-Above all other things, this is a story about love.-
From the desk of High Commander Argent,
Esteemed Pillars,
It is with my most sincere regret that I must pen this report. Following an escape attempt by the mages of Whitewater Bastion, my sentinels were forced to execute the remaining magic-users. Of course, we did not take these actions lightly, but you understand that even a hint of a mage rebellion cannot be allowed. A sentinel’s duty, after all, is to protect innocent lives from magic’s treachery.
The mage Eris Echina, who previously fled Commander Talon’s custody during the Heartfire festival, orchestrated this escape. It is my understanding that Mage Echina, a known shape-changer, was able to infiltrate the bastion to further incite rebellion among the remaining mages. Her most obvious collaborator was the mage Kalinda Halcyon, as the two have a long friendship.
However, my informant stationed in the sentinel garrison there has brought to light a far more disturbing fact: Mage Halcyon formed a romantic relationship with a sentinel officer, a Sergeant Stonewall, and thus convinced him – and most of his sentinel squad – to flee the bastion with her and the other rebel mages. I am told this romantic bond began during Mage Halcyon’s transfer to Whitewater Bastion, when she and the sergeant traveled together alone, after thralls destroyed his former squad.
I dearly wish the sordid tale ended here, but my informant’s reports contain even more disturbing intelligence. It seems that Mage Halcyon was also possessed by a thrall, although my informant claims the mage was able to “cure herself.” Furthermore, Mage Halcyon has been spreading tales that thralls are caused by the Fata—the mythical race of fairy creatures—due to some ancient anger with the human race.
Although my informant was adamant that these events transpired exactly as written here, reason dictates this is simply mage treachery in action. Halcyon is known for spinning wild tales. I include the information here in an abundance of caution, and to let you know what stories might begin to find their way through the uneducated populace. I will ensure my informant is duly educated on the difference between reality and fantasy.
Sergeant Stonewall and his squad will not survive long without hematite; they have been deemed Forsworn and officially cast out of the sentinel order. Only the One god knows where Halcyon, Echina, and the other mages have gone, but my sentinels are scouring the countryside until we locate them. Rest assured, we will find these renegades.
Yours in service,
High Commander Argent, City of Lasath, Province of Silverwood
ONE
Kali raised her hands, palms facing the twin stars that burned through the mist and glided toward her, closer, closer. Only the crunch of the thrall’s feet against the hoarfrost signaled this was no spirit among the trees, but a being of flesh and fury. No demon inhabited this poor man’s body and mind; he had been taken over by an outside force Kali understood all too well.
She was the only one who could save him.
Heart in her throat, Kali struggled to keep her voice calm. “You don’t want to hurt us.”
The thrall continued to stalk her through the dim afternoon light. By now, he was close enough to distinguish as a Canderi warrior: tall, broad, and fair-haired, like most of the folks from the country to the north.
She continued speaking, hoping to hold the thrall’s attention while she eased into the clearing. Her fogging breath vanished in the late winter mist. “This isn’t who you are. This desire to hurt us, to consume us… It’s not real.”
Was it her imagination, or did the thrall’s pace slow a fraction? Her heart beat faster, but not entirely with fear. None of the other thralls she had approached before now had shown even a trace of comprehension of her words. Behind her, Marcen sucked in a breath and Sadira murmured something that sounded like a Zhee prayer. Kali didn’t blame her fellow mages for their fear. She wanted to run too, but by now she trusted her other allies: sentinels, hidden and awaiting her signal.
One sentinel waited less patiently than the others. Kali heard Stonewall’s thoughts in her own mind. We must strike now.
Not yet, she replied in their shared, silent speech. Relax.
Anxiety colored her lover’s reply. I hate it when you say that.
Perhaps it was foolish to smile now, at the worst possible time, but Kali did anyway. But her smile died when one of the sentinels shifted in the surrounding brushwork. A few snapping twigs were the only clues to the warriors’ presence – would the thrall recognize the threat they posed?
Kali did not pull her gaze from the burning stars of the thrall’s eyes. “Listen to me,” she said, drawing his attention. “You don’t have to live this way any longer. I was like you, once. I can help you now. Please just–”
“Kali!” Sadira grabbed Kali’s arm and jerked her back the instant before the thrall lunged, landing in the spot she’d stood only a heartbeat earlier.
Both Marcen and Sadira closed in beside Kali, drawing her toward the edge of the clearing. The three mages faced the Canderi man who could have broken them even without a thrall’s unnatural strength. Kali’s breath shortened and her heart raced enough to make her dizzy, but she pushed away her fear and gathered her concentration. The promise of magic sang through her blood and she relaxed. Now, Stonewall.
The armored sentinels emerged from the mist and sprang for the thrall, while Drake whirled a set of kuvlu toward the Canderi man. A cord connected three rounded stones at the kuvlu’s ends; propelled by their own weight, the stones wrapped around the thrall’s legs, sending him to the ground with a solid thud. The warriors fell upon him: Stonewall and Beacon held his arms while Flint and Drake scrambled for his powerful legs. A piercing, inhuman shriek cut through the air—and Kali’s skull—as the thrall struggled in their grips, but they held him fast.
At least, they would for a few minutes. Hopefully, that was all the mages would need. Though Kali’s bum left knee already burned from the day’s exertions, she knelt in a patch of snow beside the thrall and held his bearded cheeks as best she could. That same eerie sound escaped his throat and he twisted again, harder, but the sentinels holding him did not move. Seren’s light…the Canderi’s face was contorted with pain and fear, and her own heart constricted in sympathy for this creature.
Not cre
“Mar, Sadira,” she managed as the thrall tried to jerk away from her touch. Both mages knelt with her, awkwardly putting their hands over her own as she gathered her magical strength.
“I’m ready, Kali,” Sadira said firmly.
Marcen’s reply was less sure. “I’ll do my best.”
As Kali had instructed, all three mages concentrated on the thrall’s particles: the place where magic lived. Particles were minuscule pieces of matter that made up everything in the world; invisible to the naked eye, but teeming with seemingly endless power and only accessible by a mage. In Kali’s mind’s-eye, she saw this man’s particles as a roiling mass of gnats: confused and frightened, choked by the thrall’s cloying hatred.
Kali tried to direct all three mages’ power to soothe the man’s agitated particles. She layered her will upon them and coaxed them to quiet. Calm.
Nothing happened.
“I’m not strong enough,” Marcen whispered.
“You can do it, just keep trying,” Kali replied through clenched teeth. The others’ magic pulsed, brightening in her awareness as their focus sharpened. The mages always discussed this method prior to each attempt. It would work – one day.
But the thrall struggled beneath the mages’ touch; his body mirrored his particles’ agitation. His sheer size and strength made the sentinels’ jobs harder, but something else was wrong. The foreign presence clung to his spirit like a choking vine wrapped around an oak tree.
The other mages were trying, but their understanding of thralls would never be as profound as Kali’s, and the Fata’s hold on this man was stronger than any of the others they’d tried—and failed—to free. Kali made a split-second decision. “This isn’t working,” she managed. “Give me your strength, and I can do it alone.”
She felt their hesitation as a pause in the flow of magic before Marcen relented first. It was as if a door opened between them and power poured through. Sadira followed his lead, though Kali could sense the Zhee mage was still holding back. Kali inhaled. Oh, it was sweet, that power, and there was so much of it. So much strength, especially from Sadira, who burned like the sun. Marcen’s magic was only a flickering torch in the wind, but he had his own mettle for Kali to call upon. Careful, though, she must be careful not to take too much, lest she do irreparable damage to either of her friends.
Kali was so wrapped up in her concentration that she only dimly noted that one of the sentinels muttered something acerbic, but Stonewall silenced his squad-mate at once. Even so, Kali felt Stonewall’s uncertainty and her attention wavered. No. She pushed his emotions away. She had to focus. Another breath; another draw of strength from her fellow mages. Not much more. She could do this. She would do this.
Damp, dirty skin twitched beneath her palms as the Canderi tried to jerk out of her grip, but his movements were less desperate than before. His breath came slower, steadier, and more tension drained from his body. Heartened, Kali shifted her focus. Now that he was calm, the real healing could begin. Another indrawn breath, and Kali dove her awareness back to his particles, searching for… There! Deep within, a parasite upon his spirit: a foreign presence akin to infection. A disease to be burned away. Once more, Kali gathered her strength and concentrated on the infection. A flare of magic, then the thrall wailed again. But this was no inhuman shriek that reverberated through the forest. This was the cry of a man in pain.
“It’s working,” Marcen gasped.
“Hush, and pay attention,” Sadira told him, though she, too, sounded astonished.
Kali fought to ignore both of them and the hope blooming in her own heart, for she could not afford the distraction. No previous attempt had gone this well. She squeezed her eyes shut and pressed her magic harder. She would pay for this exertion later, but she didn’t care now.
The man shrieked again, twisting and jerking in pain. Kali kept up her magical assault until every trace of the Fata’s thrall was gone. The Canderi man groaned, but stopped thrashing, and his breathing was even. When Kali looked at him again, only a man looked back. His eyes were bright blue, like most Canderi, though red-rimmed, shadowed, and wet.
Choked words escaped him. Kali didn’t recognize his speech and silently lamented that she’d never learned the northerner’s language. Perhaps sensing her frustration, the Canderi took another shuddering breath and said in heavily accented Aredian, “What am I?”
Exhaustion almost made Kali topple over, but she managed a smile. “You’re safe. You’re free.”
“Free.” He glanced at the sentinels and Drake, who still held him in place.
Everyone looked at Kali, waiting for the all-clear. She leaned back to give the Canderi some breathing room, and nodded.
Stonewall spoke a soft word to the others, who released the former thrall, though Flint’s gaze remained fixed upon the Canderi, her mouth a hard line. Stonewall and Drake sat on their heels while Beacon, the sentinel mender, studied the Canderi man with his keen healer’s gaze.
“Incredible,” Beacon murmured. “All trace of Fata possession’s gone. The magic worked.”
“Did it?” Flint had risen to swipe snow off her gear. Her blue eyes, as vivid as the Canderi’s, narrowed in suspicion and a hand rested on one of the twin daggers at her hips. “‘Cause that would be the first time.”
“There’s a first for everything,” Drake replied, green eyes glinting with amusement.
Kali looked at the Canderi, who had sat up. “You speak Aredian?” she asked.
“Very small. Little,” he corrected himself. His blond beard was tangled and his clothing was in tatters. All Canderi were taller and broader than Aredians, but this man looked as if he’d not properly eaten in too long. His cheekbones were too prominent and his eyes were sunken, and he was thinner than any Canderi Kali had ever seen. But he was still a bear of a man. Only Drake was his equal in size and strength.
“You’re safe,” Kali said again, hoping to drive that point home. “You were a thrall – possessed by the Fata. Do you know of the Fata? We also call them fairies, or glimmers, here in Aredia. They are strange, ancient beings who’ve been turning our people into their thralls.”
He frowned, but did not answer. Well, it was quite a lot to take in.
Kali tried again to reassure him. “We are all your friends here.” Somewhere behind her, Flint snorted, but Kali ignored the sound. “What’s your name?”
The Canderi was silent for a long moment, studying his filthy hands as he clenched and unclenched his fingers, until at last he murmured, “Atanar.”
“Ah-taa-naar?” Kali repeated the name carefully, though her accent was terrible. But he only nodded, his gaze distant. She tried to keep her voice light as she gestured to each member of their party. “That’s Stonewall and that’s his brother, Drake. That’s Flint, glowering behind me–”
“Am not!”
Kali bit back a grin and continued. “Beacon is the sentinel with the mender’s bag, and the other mages with me are Sadira and Marcen. Oh, and I’m Kali.”
Atanar nodded again, though she wasn’t sure how much had registered, and she did not miss the way he glanced at the weapons each sentinel wore. But his gaze rested the longest on Sadira, whose red-brown skin and moonstone-pale hair made her stand out. “You are…different,” he said to her.
“I am Zhee.” When he did not seem to understand, she added, “My home country, Zheem, is far south of here.”
“Are you from Cander?” Stonewall asked Atanar. Some Canderi chose to leave the tundra and head south, for Aredia, though generally those Canderi lived as roving bandits.
Atanar nodded. “But I cannot return there.”
His tone brooked no room for questions, but Kali could not suppress her curiosity. “Why?”
Steely blue eyes met hers and he said only, “Vorunn. I am exiled.”
“Well, do you have anyone you can return to?” Drake asked.
“No.”
