Gail Z. Martin - Chronicles of the Necromancer 04 - Dark Ladys Chosen.pdf - Gail Z. Martin - widez2

DARK LADY’S

CHOSEN

(Book Four of the Chronicles Of The Necromancer)

By Gail Z. Martin

Dedication

For Frances Zehner and Betty Martin, my mother and my “second mother.” Their belief in

me helped to sustain my vision for the books on the long road to publication.

Acknowledgements

Once again, bringing a book to life requires a brotherhood of dedicated people who are

bound together for the love of the story. Thanks always to my husband, Larry, who is my

first, best editor, and to my kids, Kyrie, Chandler and Cody who have to live with a writer.

Thanks also to Christian Dunn, Mark Newton and Vincent Rospond for bringing my dream

to life. And of course, thanks to my agent, Ethan Ellenberg, for his support and

encouragement. I also want to thank my friends at the Carolina and Arizona Renaissance

Festivals, who have allowed me a glimpse into the life of a bard. And of course, thanks to all

my readers and to the author and convention friends who make life on a book tour livable.

CHRONICLES OF THE NECROMANCER

THE FIRST YEAR of the reign of King Martris of Margolan, son of Bricen, did not usher in

the hoped-for peace. Though Jared the Usurper wore the crown for less than a full year, the

damage that he caused brought Margolan to the brink of famine and fractured the centuries-

old Truce between mortals and vayash moru. Loyalists to the Usurper King went into hiding,

none so defiant as Lord Curane of Lochlanimar, whose granddaughter was forced to bear

Jared’s bastard son.

Just after the Feast of the Departed, King Martris Drayke wed Princess Kiara, daughter of

King Donelan and successor to the throne of Isencroft. Their wedding, a rare love match,

also sealed a covenant made long ago between their two kingdoms. The marriage joins the

crowns of Isencroft and Margolan until heirs can be born to place the kingdoms under

separate rule once more. Within a month of the wedding, the king and queen announced

Kiara’s pregnancy. Succession assured, Tris had no choice but to lead his army south to

Lochlanimar to lay siege to Curane’s stronghold.

On the battlefield, the great energy river called the Flow is violently unstable, making it

increasingly dangerous for Tris and his mages to counter Curane’s blood magic. The

Margolan army is a tattered shadow of its former greatness, hurriedly reformed after Tris

took back the throne. Rebels who followed Ban Soterius in the uprising, relatives of the

thousands of people who were murdered or disappeared under the Usurper’s reign, and

willing ghost fighters make up the bulk of the forces, along with a few dozen vayash moru

and those mages who have defied the Sisterhood to go to war.

The siege is going badly. Nearly three months into the war, casualties are high, winter

storms are fierce, and food is scarce. Plague has broken out among the soldiers, sent by

Curane’s blood mages. Magic and the Flow pose as great a threat as any of Curane’s

weapons, and Tris Drayke may lose his life, his kingdom and perhaps his soul if the tide

cannot be turned.

Within Shekerishet, a traitor threatens Kiara’s life. Several attempts on the new queen’s life

have barely been averted, and suspicion falls on old friends and trusted supporters. Alone

in a foreign land, Kiara must rely on herself for protection. The crowns of two kingdoms

depend on her ability to discover the traitor’s identity and outmaneuver the dangers before it

is too late.

In Isencroft, violent opposition to a joint throne raises the threat of civil war. Cam of

Cairnrach, King Donelan’s Champion, has been taken as a hostage to force the king’s

hand. Cam has discovered the identity of a traitor whose actions betray both King Donelan

and Tris Drayke, but he may well die before he ever gets the chance send a warning.

Lord Jonmarc Vahanian faces treachery of a different sort in Dark Haven. Rogue vayash

moru, led by Malesh of Tremont, have slaughtered mortal villages in an attempt to draw out

Jonmarc. Malesh tried to bring Lady Carina across as a strike against Jonmarc, but the

Dark Gift warred with her healing magic, leaving her neither mortal nor undead.

In desperation, Jonmarc swore Istra’s Bargain, a soldier’s vow to trade his soul to the Dark

Lady in exchange for the death of his enemy. It is a suicide pact. He and Lord Gabriel of the

Blood Council, along with vayash moru loyal to the Truce, have left to battle Malesh, aided

by the shapeshifting vyrkin. Destroying Malesh before a cure can be found for Carina may

assure her death, because of the strong bond between maker and fledgling. Malesh’s threat

to destroy a village every night left Jonmarc no choice, although the price of peace may be

Carina’s life.

Tris and Jonmarc thought that taking back the crown of Margolan would return the Winter

Kingdoms to peace and prosperity. They were wrong.

DAY 1

Gail Z. Martin - Chronicles of the Necromancer 04 - Dark Ladys Chosen.pdf

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