Lemuria: Children of the Mysts

Title: CHILDREN OF THE MYSTS

Author: Cecilia Beatriz

Genre: Fiction, Fantasy, Romance, Mystery, Drama

Status: Ongoing (progress: slow)

Overview:

Cheska

Fred is alive.

They had both survived the plague.

Cheska couldn’t help compare the teenager she knew and the man he’d turned out to be. Fred was still kind and generous but he’d become stronger and braver. They were all traits she admired and drew her to him. But Cheska could sense him distancing himself from everyone, including her.

She would let him go if she was the reason behind his behavior, yet Fred had proven the opposite to her.

Then why did she feel he was keeping something important from her?

Fred

A secret is a double-edged sword.

He’d seen secrets tear apart relationships. Fred had witnessed firsthand how it destroyed his parents’ marriage. Now he knew they were also meant to protect the people they care about and those around them. His best friend used to moonlight as a legendary hacker, the stuff of nightmares to the corrupt and unjust. And the Roucans carried the biggest secret of all, they represented Serra (the surface world) in Uruimeth, a kingdom that has existed since the time of ancient civilizations like Lemuria and Atlantis.

Fred never expected that his family has a bigger secret to hide. It explained his father’s sternness, his mother’s protectiveness and his ability to control electricity.

With the Mysts in the brink of war, his ability may just be the answer to preventing it. In return, he would have to make the ultimate sacrifice. This time no one can save him, not even Cheska.

Continue to Table of Contents or scroll down to view the latest chapter.

Copyright © 2017-2022 Cecilia Beatriz. All rights reserved.

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Disclaimer:

Please note that chapters posted here are in rough draft and may contain errors – typos, grammar and punctuation.

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

A/N: Hi everyone, sorry for going AWOL. I’ve been very very busy in the 3D world and only had time to visit this site today. I have handwritten chapters on my desk still waiting to be encoded and uploaded, but that will take a while to have them all done because of various commitments. So, I apologize in advance for the delays and thank you for your patience. 🙂

– CeBea

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 14

Parents

Rael regarded him with an unreadable expression. Was he angry? Disappointed? Fred could never tell unless his dad spoke, and usually, it was to express his disappointment in him. His mom Cassandra was the polar opposite. She would have fussed over him as soon as she saw the blood on his jacket if it weren’t for his dad standing them.

“Honestly, Rael, are you going to tell him I told you so when he’s already hurt?” Cassandra said hotly. “Let me fix his shoulder first and then you can scold him till his ears ring.” She shoved him out of the way and moved briskly to Fred’s side. She curled her pointer at him and to his amazement, he floated out of the room with her while his dad brought up the rear.

“Oh dear,” Cassandra murmured. She stared at the fresh pink skin where the bullet had entered.

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 13

Injured

Fred watched Mohy tumble down to earth. The doctor was still very angry and his shoulder throbbed though the wound had already closed. The bullet hadn’t gone through, it had lodged itself in the bone. He would have to get it out soon.

A cloud formed beneath Mohy and caught him in mid-air. Fred descended with Zafeera in tow. The Libyan guardian hadn’t said a word to protect her brother or herself. She had chosen to suffer quietly. It suited the doctor just fine. He wasn’t in the mood to listen to their excuses.

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 12

Forest of Glass

Fred was falling through the sky. He had been riding on a cloud when blinding pain caused him to blackout. It was as if someone had hit him at the back of his head. The raincloud dispersed and the doctor fell into the ocean. In its depths, he dreamed of Zafeera, armed men and bars of what looked like a cage. Fred awoke, gasping for air and swallowing water in the process. He swam to the surface, Cheska forefront in his mind. Panic built up as he tried to get his bearings. Where was he? All he could see were the endless water and sky meeting each other at the far distance.

Fred shut his eyes and shook his head to clear it but then he remembered the dream … and knew where she was. He shot up to the sky as forks of lightning struck the water. The sky rumbled and became a roiling gray mass that blocked the sun completely.

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 11

Prisoner

Cheska’s anxiety grew as they got closer to the gate. But she wasn’t the only one, Zafeera and Mohy were tense and flinched at every sound their passage made. The ethereal symbols they encountered were drawn in reverse which could account for the danger they sensed. The Sentries though behaved normally which meant they were on the right track.

Eventually, they reached a dead end. A set of symbols were inscribed along the edges of the rock wall. It gave a warning and instructions on how to open the gate:

Return whence you came

or pay the blood price your ancestors demand.

‘Ware you seek more than refuge,

you will not find it beyond this gate.

Deemed worthy, you shall find safety in your mother’s halls.

The undeserving shall traverse the bowels of the earth!

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 10

Head Guardian

Fred wasn’t sure he had heard Cheska right and asked her to repeat what she said.

“They can go,” Cheska said.

“It might be a trap.”

“I’ll ask the Sentries to scout the area and keep them safe.”

“You want them to keep an eye on Zafeera and Mohy,” Fred spoke, not as a question but as a statement.

“That too.”

“I’m going with them.”

“Fred,” she warned.

“They have a better chance of survival with me around.”

“Good thing Keena and the other Sentries aren’t here with us,” she muttered. “Fred, you can’t come with them. You said so yourself that it could be a trap. Are you sure that it’s for them and not for you?”

“I won’t get caught.” He cupped her cheek with his hand and wish he could will the frown away from her face. “I may not be able to shut it off yet but I can guarantee that I can protect myself better now.”

Her eyes hardened and widened the space between them. “You’re not invincible. All it takes is for one person to know your weakness and use it against you. It’s bad enough that one of them knows who you are. And this Shadow, how long have you actually known him?”

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 9

A Love Letter

The portal shimmered in the air. Cheska had kept it open so the doctor could come back anytime. He looked at it, half of him wanted to return to her already. But she’d worn an expression that he knew all too well. Cheska wouldn’t appreciate having him with her with what she was about to do. She had always been independent and strong enough to handle her own problems. The knowledge alone kept him from rushing back to her.

“Fred, is something the matter?” James’ quiet voice bounced against the curved ceiling of the room.

The doctor turned his head to his best friend who stared at him strangely. “I was just thinking,” he replied, aware of two other guests in the novelist’s temporary headquarters.

The Libyan guardian gazed at him in recognition, her face composed. She’d gotten better at hiding her emotions, he thought. Mohy, on the other hand, couldn’t look him in the eye. The novelist frowned at the Libyans and came up to Fred.

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 8

Uncle

Cheska was uncomfortable staying under her uncle’s roof. The King hadn’t wanted the crown and had opposed his sister’s marriage to a Serran; he’d known the prophecy that plagued the women in their line. She had been very young when King Cori visited her mother who was pregnant with Louis at the time. They had argued when they thought they were alone in the garden. And later her uncle’s panicked voice called for help as her mother suddenly went into labor. Louis was born two months premature. Alfred Roucan, unaware of the siblings’ quarrel, had been grateful that his brother-in-law was present.

But the King had been ashamed in front of Cheska. She had sprung up from behind a tree, revealing herself in the process, to bring aid to her mother. Her uncle had left after asking about his sister’s wellbeing. That was the last time she’d seen him until Fred’s suicide mission brought them back together.

Arms circled around her waist. The hum she began to associate with Fred filled her ears. His energy when it touched her skin made her heady and reckless.

“No, don’t turn around yet,” he said when she moved.

She leaned back against him and looked out the window. Cheska couldn’t have been more relieved that Fred returned. If he hadn’t come back she would’ve followed him. But at that moment she wanted to run her hands through his pale hair and —

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 7

Empath

“You know how she is,” the novelist said, his fingers hovered over the holographic keyboard. “You can’t dissuade her once she’s set on doing something. I gave her the data so she would at least know where to go. And it helped, didn’t it?” James’ attention returned to the screen. “I didn’t have much choice, anyway. It was either that or get mauled by a panther.”

“You sound like you know her that well,” the doctor said later.

“Louis and Mr. Roucan can be just as stubborn. It’s a family trait.”

Fred had forgotten that Mr. Roucan had been James’ guardian when the novelist was orphaned.

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 6

Self-control

The siblings fell in stunned silence at the doctor’s declaration.

“You’re kidding, right?” Louis asked.

Fred didn’t answer but held his gaze while Cheska’s grip tightened around his fingers.

“You’re serious.” Louis’ brow furrowed. “Why?”

“I died in the forest – or somewhere in Libya. It doesn’t matter where. One of your publicists, staff or James can come up with a viable story.”

Children of the Mysts, Chapter 5

Anchor

The worst was over. Fred was alive. He looked different, though. It wasn’t the aftermath of his illness, but the return of his gifts. Changed or not, she was glad Fred lived.

Cheska was also happy to have regained all her memories. It helped her understand her relationship with the doctor. They had found each other when they were both estranged from their families and needed a friend. Had Louis never chatted about the new student like some sort of hero and, sometimes, anti-hero, she wouldn’t have been curious to know Fred.

She was back at the cottage again, trying out a new recipe when someone rapped on her door. That “someone” proceeded to open the door and entered without waiting for an invitation.