Title: The Gatekeepers of Ky
Michael
Kane Series: Book III
Author: K. J. Dahlen
ISBN: 978-1-62420-152-3
Email: kjdahlen1@yahoo.com
Genre: Mystery
Excerpt Heat Level: 1
Book Heat Level: 1
TAGLINE
Guardians stop a group of Immortals from Ky, from getting
the five pieces of an ancient magical Staff that could destroy two worlds?
BLURB
When Immortals, Bastian,
Gunner and Jori gain access to a forbidden portal located on the planet Ky,
they come to earth looking for the five pieces of an ancient magical Staff. Michael,
working with Guardians from Ky, Willow, Echo and Talon, helps them track down
pieces of the Staff before Bastian can find it. If Bastian finds all the
pieces, he plans to take the Staff back to Ky. If he does that the Staff will
destroy both Ky and Earth. Can Michael, Willow and her group stop Bastian from
finding the Staff and returning to Ky?
EXCERPT
Back
at the palace Willow and the others grabbed their weapons and met in the Greta
Room where Keighten waited for them. He held in his hands a parchment and a
small flat box. He handed Willow the box and opened the parchment.
Keighten
looked at them. "You may or may not be aware of a time when our planet was
torn by war. Under Agon's rule we knew a peace--at first--then he found the
Staff of Seti and everything we knew changed. We learned of war and black
magic. Many lives were lost forever. The Staff of Seti brought us nothing but
strife as we learned too late of its hidden power.
"The
Staff was created to steal a man's will to the point of madness. It brings
nothing but pain and death to all who follow it.
"We
learned a hard lesson the last time the Staff was here. We cannot allow Bastian
or anyone else to bring it back. I am charging that you three follow Bastian
and the others to the place where we banished the Staff. It was broken into
five pieces and scattered. There are some on the other side of the Gate who
will help you and one who will come to you. He is special in the ways of the
universe and will carry the markings of old."
"Father,"
Willow asked, "what manner of weapon did Bastian use to murder the
Guardians? What could have taken the lives of Immortals?"
Keighten
stared at his daughter, "Bastian must have a shard of the original
Staff."
"But
how would he have such a thing?" Echo wanted to know.
"He
must have known his son would go after the Staff at some point. All he had to
do was hang onto the shard." Keighten shrugged.
"What
will happen if Bastian gets all five pieces and returns to Ky?" Echo
asked.
"If
the Staff is brought back to Ky, it will destroy our world. The Staff will
remember the past. Bastian will feel the power it possessed when his father had
the Staff. That power will drive him to madness. Agon raised Bastian to rule
after he was gone and when Agon was defeated in battle, Bastian knew his
chances to rule Ky was gone forever. He's doing this to get his kingdom
back."
"How
do you know all of this?" Talon asked.
"When
the wars began, we found the magician who brought the Staff here. He told us he
had been paid to bring it here by our enemies from the planet Hano. King Leria
knew what the Staff would do and wanted his revenge for what the armies had
done in the battle fields of Crisom. Three of his sons died in those
battles." Keighten paused. "King Leria wanted our destruction for the
deaths of his sons."
"How
can an inanimate object yield so much power?" Willow wanted to know.
"The
Staff was cursed to feed off the essence of the king. It would, over time,
build up its own power to corrupt leading the holder to feel he had more power
than he actually did. By the time we got the Staff away from Agon, the magic
was almost to the point of madness. Agon was quite ill for the longest time and
eventually slipped into the madness after he was taken away from the palace.
He's barely alive yet today. If Bastian retrieves the Staff, he will be hit by
the full strength of the Staff."
"What
about us?" Talon inquired. "Won't we be affected as well by the power
of the Staff?"
Keighten
shook his head and went to the table and picked up an old wooden box. "You
must put the pieces of the Staff inside this box as soon as you can. The Staff
is rendered harmless once inside. The Staff is not of our world but of a world
older than here."
He
handed the box to Talon. "The world you are going to is called Earth. The
pieces of the staff are in five different places. To follow Bastian you will
need help. I've called on the Elders to assist you in any way they can. They
will send a man named Michael Kane to you. He bears the marks of the Ancients on
his body. These are a primitive people and they do not know of our magic. You
must not harm them or allow them to see you use the magic you possess. Also,
each piece of the Staff will be guarded and the ones who guard the pieces will
fight to keep them hidden. The Guardians are our own people who chose to go to
another planet to safeguard the pieces of the Staff. They left the only home
they knew to keep the Staff hidden from all who would look for it. Now it will
be their children's children who look after it. They will not know of its
history or why the pieces must remain hidden to the world. You must convince
them to turn over the pieces to you. You cannot break the rules we live by or
you will not be able to return."
"If
we break the rules and cannot return, how does Bastian hope to do so?"
Echo frowned.
"He
will blast through the barriers protecting our world. If he does, it will begin
a series of event that will destroy our planet, killing every living being
here." Keighten told them. "That is what you must prevent at all
costs."
Echo
gasped as she stared at her King. Willow and Talon stood a little taller.
Willow crossed her arm over her chest and with a clenched fist tapped the
symbol of their planet on her uniform.
"For
Ky." She whispered. Talon and Echo followed suit and when they did,
Keighten uttered, "For Ky." He turned and led the way back to the
gate.
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