Novels by APHRODITE

“How do you know about the charm spells?”“How could I not! Innis, do you know that your mother had an elder brother?”Innis grew pale.“Y-yes. But he’s...”“Disappeared without a trace. Why would Sidon Andago need him?”I caught the girl so she wouldn’t faint.“Tell me more, you corpse!”That tone finally made him pay attention. The ghost looked at me once more, I released my power, and it was his turn to become pale—or, rather, translucent.“By the Bright! You—”“Yep. Me. And if you don’t answer me right now, I will burn your chicken coop to the ground!”The spirit sighed and began telling his story. He was also a necromancer, who, by a cruel twist of fate, had become a healer.If you make a drawback your advantage, you can heal with the power intended to destroy, that was true.I had never been taught that, but the Andago family seemed no stranger to experimentation.Anyway, Tidann had died like he was supposed to. But during his lifetime, he had conducted trials in that same labor

I was barely moving my lips, but she definitely heard me, as she ran her hand over her hair and all of a sudden, broke down in tears. It had been a while since I had felt myself that stupid.Still, Martha didn’t cry for long. She raised her head high.“Alex, boy, yer alive!”And there was so much love and happiness in her voice. She didn’t care about herself at all, the main thing was my safety.I couldn’t help but blurt out, from the bottom of my heart, “Mother…”Truly, the mother is not the one who gave birth.“I was so scared for you. After we spoke, I ran off here, yer snake led me. Everything’s quiet, but the ghosts are all afraid. Lots of templars in the palace, all tip-toeing ‘round yer wifey. Methinks, ‘twas the bitched viper who started all this, mark me word!”“Mother, but where’s Tommy? Rene?”“Tommy’s on the lam, he’s taking his wife to Rick. Rene and his pa high-tailed, too. Probably hiding somewhere, ‘lest they lose their knobs in the heat.”“Did somebody get—”“Yep. The

During dinner, I felt like I was the main course.The local residents questioned me about everything, starting from silk prices in Tevarr to my family, from weather to the royal palace.I squirmed like I was in a hot pan, trying to avoid telling too much. I was pretty good at that.By the end of dinner, Amorta graced me with a smile and a suggestive look from her thin eyelashes, while Sidon thawed out and started to tell me his hunting stories. If they had been true, all the beasts in Radenor wouldn’t be enough for him.I listened to them, nodded, and was finally rewarded with seeing the heir: Sidon’s complete copy. He had Amorta’s ears, but was the spitting image of his father otherwise.Maybe that was why he cherished the child so much. Innis was way too smart, sharp, and independent, not to mention, entirely Andago in her appearance.Blood couldn’t be locked away. I had to coo for a bit, while discreetly collecting a few stray hairs from the baby’s clothes.Let’s see if he’s truly

Summoning Ak-kvir was easy.He appeared almost right away and sniffed the air.“You again, necromancer?”“Do you object?”“Do you have the payment?”I sneered viciously.“I’ll figure something out.”“Get comfortable, then.”I sat down on his back, and Ak-kvir darted off straight ahead. Eight hours to the town?Dear Innis, just twenty minutes...and that’s taking into account that the demon had grown very lazy.We passed the town wall in a few rough leaps.Good thing that Ak-kvir’s claws were saber-sharp and could pierce any stone three feet deep. And finally, I was left standing in a narrow street. Monsignors bandits, come on.I can’t believe nobody wants these easy pickings!Yeah, that was rhetorical.Five minutes later, a three-man group stumbled upon me.They were so delighted that it was even funny.“Oh, look who’s come to visit!”“A noble boy, bless his heart!”“You there, stand and deliver!”They tried to surround me; how naive. Did they want me to speak?Like dark lightning, I d

Tommy was blissfully sleeping inside his house with Henrietta nestled against his shoulder, snuffling and smiling in her sleep. But when an ice-cold wave came over them, both had to rise up, their peace disturbed.That wind was something they could never hide or shield themselves from; it was a death wind, and it brought cold from the grave, making him feel as if he were in a coffin.Even dead men could wake up after feeling something like that...and sometimes, they did.“What!”The darkness in the room grew thicker and took on Martha’s shape, smiling with her mouth full of shark teeth.“It’s me, Tom. Martha.”Instantly, Tommy was relieved. He had seen that many times before.No big deal, Alex had pulled stunts much worse than that. When you live with necromancers, do as necromancers do.“What’s wrong?”“Treason. Take your wife and hide, I will warn the Morinars, so...try to get to Torrin. You are the most vulnerable of us all.”“How’s Alex?”“Alive.”Tommy breathed out.“Good. But wh

I had two options: either promptly summon Ak-kvir and get to the capital, wherein I would clean up the mess, but the schemers would have time to get away, that was as clear as day.The other option...Fine, you’ve gotten rid of the rightful king.Now what?Oops.Well, you can sit on the throne of Radenor, you would even stay there...for like twenty seconds. After that, prepare a dust tray and a broom. No need for a coffin, the remains could be poured over a flowerbed in the palace garden. If I held off my return, I would get the chance to reveal the plotters.But what about my family?Well, that was a moot question. If I were a plotter, I would first kill the king—me—and then, if everything worked out well, switch to his entourage.Yet, I suspected that no templars had survived. Generally, I was a nice guy, but they had managed to really piss me off. I still had some time before they would attack Martha, Tommy, Rene, Dariola... Although, why would they attack Dariola?Her child was th

22 September 2050 He never felt like Jorge H. Bernardo when he returned. He felt like Sinbad. Arrived back at last, at the end of his travels, returned before the King, trembling in wait as his fate hung in the balance, having journeyed, wandered, gone wayward, and gone lost far and wide before finding his place in the world again. His beloved corner of Sekovia Drive: a lone Red Maple painting a chill gray on the sunlit pavement that he could claim as his own. He would stoop, panting, one hand extended to reach the broken bricks of the curb before his knee gave away, and support himself as he sat down, home again. Throwing his pillowcase aside, sliding backwards until his back nearly touched the southern boundary wall of the Duvall Shelter for the Homeless, he paused to hurriedly take out his neatly folded throw from the case and push it with his shaky hand between his back and the wall. Or a large burn stamped on his back would be the next big thing. He was fifty-two. Kneeing

22-23 September, 2050Sometimes she felt she had been running all her life.It hadn't always been like that, but the persistence of a refugee life felt never-ending sometimes.Today's run felt good, however. In her pocket, she held fifty dollars that she had promised Caleb she'd take back one day as they were hers.After a long run away from the theater, she had at last found a bus stop but decided on a little culinary detour. While that digression - a little Polish joint hidden among the shabby buildings in view of the inundated beach - was much needed, it had delayed her.She couldn't reach a stop in time for her bus and had to embark on a longer route with two bus changes and one lengthy stop at a recharging station for the vehicle's electric battery.Now, she would be arriving at Vera's house by midnight.She had to get off before the

22 September, 2050The train grumbled to a stop in the inky night. There was an eerie silence around Harry as he got off. The night seemed to be pregnant with sinister possibilities.Only a few passengers got out of the cars with him. A few more were waiting on the benches to catch the next leg of the route. Factory workers would have left in droves in the hours before. There was a feeling of unease, he just couldn't shake off.He had been unable to peel the image of the girl's face away from his eyes. The caramel skin, the wavy hair dancing about her temples, and those dark green eyes had been encroaching his thoughts again and again. But the strangeness of this hour as he stepped across the platform helped clear his mind.Something caught his attention as he moved past the waiting area. It was a vomit-colored jacket that jumped at him - he would recognize that jacket anywhere in the world. The wear

22 September, 2050Harry would always remember that moment. It stood apart on all the horizons of his life like a distinct silver lining.He remembered every detail of her countenance as it looked then. It was as clear as the features of a full moon, resplendent on the rare, starry night when the sky was clear.It was a moment that changed everything. Nothing would ever be the same again.****He ran into her at his street theater. Her audition was so raw, so real, that the theater runner, Caleb, hired on the spot.Within minutes, the stage was set. The world felt on the verge of something new. Harry lifted his nose into the cool evening breeze.The gong sounded. The play began. In ten minutes, his head began to swim. He had thought she was a first time actor, a casual hire. But no!She was a strange experience.More and more he felt it difficult to keep track of the line between pretend and reality. A lot of what she was projecting, what she was saying, not saying, seemed to be coming