Knights of Light (The Conjurors Series Book 2) (37 page)

Valerie and her friends
stared at the unicorn with awe. She was a force of nature, and hearing her
words was like seeing the future.

“We will,” Valerie
agreed, and for the first time, she believed it, and knew that she would be the
one to lead them.

Azra turned her eyes to
Pathos, which was strapped to Valerie’s side.
The magic in your weapon has evolved.
I have never sensed so much power in a single object.

Valerie drew her blade,
remembering the oath that she had made with her friends. “Yeah, we promised on
my sword to never lie to each other, and there was this flash of light and
there are new words on it. What does it say?”

Azra’s eyes skimmed the
symbols, troubled.
Once by duty joined, once by the golden cord, the Pillars
of Light are honor sworn to fight for the Balance, bound together unto death.

“What did we get
ourselves into?” Henry asked, a little breathless.

It is a binding
spell, a powerful one that cannot be broken. But even I have never heard of the
Pillars of Light or the Balance. A weapon like this would only be woven with
new magic in times of great chaos.

“It’s another sign that
something big is coming,” Kanti said.

“Which we all kinda knew
already,” Cyrus said, trying to lighten the mood. “We already said we wouldn’t
lie to each other. This just makes sure we can’t.”

“And whatever’s coming,
we’re in it together,” Valerie added.

Azra nodded
thoughtfully, but then, with a little shake of her mane, seemed to let the
stress ripple off of her back.
We know change is coming. But thanks to you,
Valerie, we have a slight advantage.

“What do you mean?”
Valerie asked.

The orb that you
ignited in the Black Castle was placed there by my husband long ago. He lost
his life putting it there, though I never learned who killed him.

Valerie’s heart clenched
at the knowledge of how brutally Azra’s love had been torn from her.

“What does it do?” Cyrus
asked.

It absorbs dark
magic. Any Fractus who are within a radius of several miles will find that
their powers are significantly dampened. It also defuses the magic that hides
the castle from the rest of the world. We will never need an invitation to
return if we need to. If we fight Reaper on his own ground, he will be
weakened.

“And if we fight him on
our turf, we still have an advantage,” Kanti said with a grin. “Way to go, Val.
We should start thinking about our next plan of attack now—maybe we should try
to surprise him before the Fractus have a chance to regroup.”

Valerie’s fingers turned
cold at the thought of returning to the Black Castle. She had hoped to never
see it again, though her instincts told her she wouldn’t be that lucky.

Enough talk of war. Today
I am here to meet your courageous friend who escaped the Fractus to make a new
life for himself. He has asked for my help in developing his natural magic.
Come closer, Jack.

Jack’s usually snarky
expression had been wiped off his face and replaced with wonder, making him
look younger, like the kid he really still was. He approached slowly, and,
almost as if he wasn’t conscious of what he was doing, he slid his fingers
through Azra’s mane.

Can you sense the
spark of your power inside you already?

He nodded, his eyes a
little glazed. “Like a candle flickering in the darkness.”

That’s exactly what
magic is at its best. A light in the chaos, truth that dispels the lies, and
hope that drives away despair.

The truth of Azra’s
words washed over Valerie, reminding her why she would continue to fight the
battle against the Fractus to the bitter end. They had to protect magic as a
force for good in the universe. And she didn’t have to do it alone. She never loved
her friends more than at that moment.

“We’ve got our work cut
out for us if we want to make sure that those words stay true for the next
generation of humans and Conjurors. Are you guys up for it?” Valerie asked with
a smile.

Her friends nodded, and
a sense of purpose and determination filled her. Protecting all that was
beautiful and good about magic was what she was meant to do with her life, the
positive mark she’d leave on the universe.

“The adventure
continues. Count me in,” Cyrus quipped. She couldn’t agree more.

“You sound different than last time you
visited,” Tan said to the tall, robed man who was visiting him while he walked
across campus. Chern, he thought the man had said his name was.

“That’s because I was
pretending to be a bumbling but well-meaning fool for Thai. Though you share
the same genes, in you I see much greater potential. Your brother is someone
that I manipulate for his own good. But I can tell you the truth and trust you
to understand,” Chern said smoothly.

“Thai’s a good guy. But
you’re right that sometimes he can’t see what’s right in front of him. Like how
he’s torturing himself over that girl, Valerie. Move on, already! I’m sure she’s
on to the next guy by now,” Tan said with exasperation.

“I didn’t come to talk
about such trivialities,” Chern replied, his tone sharp. Then he softened his
expression. “I came to issue you an invitation.”

“To what?”

“To the Globe. I have a
way to bring you here, right away, if you wish.”

“But Thai says that’s
not possible anymore,” Tan said, stopping in his tracks to stare at this
strange man.

“I let him think that
the Excision was completed, but there are still ways to travel between Earth
and the Globe. Thai doesn’t need to know that yet,” Chern said.

“Even if that’s true,
he’ll still never go for it. You told him about that prophecy that says if he
goes to the Globe, Valerie will die.”

“I told him what I
needed him to hear.”

“I get it. To break him
up with Valerie. I guess I owe you one, since I don’t have to see her annoying
face around our room every day,” Tan said. But then his eyes narrowed
suspiciously. “Why are you telling me all this?”

“I rule a powerful army,
and I could use a general with your strengths whom I can trust.”

Tan sat down on a nearby
bench to get his bearings. “Then we’ll have to tell Thai the truth now, or I’ll
never convince him to come to the Globe.”

“I don’t want Thai by my
side. I want you,” Chern said.

Tan was at once
uncertain and flattered. But he was shrewd enough to recognize an opportunity
when he saw one. “What do you want from me?”

“I want you to get close
to Valerie and her friends. There are things I need to know that she’ll never
tell me, but she might tell you.”

“I can’t stand that
girl. Why would I ever agree to abandon my brother to spend time with her?” Tan
said, trying to hide his eagerness.

“Because I’ll give you
what you want. What none of your friends or family could possibly give you.”

The memory of Venu
touching him with his poison, almost killing him, filled Tan’s mouth with a
bitter taste. His heart rate accelerated as he considered what Chern was
offering. “You know where Venu is?”

“Better. He is my
subject. And his life is yours in return for your help. That and much more.”

Tan didn’t need to
consider the offer for long. “I’m in. What do I do next?”

Thank
you for reading
The Society of Imaginary Friends
. I appreciate feedback
and welcome your reviews on the site where you purchased this book. If you’d
like to learn more about
The Conjurors Series
, please check out
www.kristenpham.com
, where you can sign up for my newsletter and be the
first to hear about giveaways, contests, and new releases.

If you enjoyed this book, check out the
next book in
The Conjurors
Series
.
Guardians of the Boundary
is currently available on Amazon.
The
final book in the series,
Edge of Pathos
, will be released in the spring
of 2015.

Kristen
Pham lives for really great fudge, rollercoasters, and exploring new worlds via
fiction. She lives in San Jose, CA with her son (Jake), daughter (Clara) and
husband, where she eagerly waits for Jake and Clara to turn eleven and receive their
invitations to Hogwarts. Her childhood memories of adventures with her
imaginary friends inspired
The Conjurors Series
.

You can reach her on Twitter (
www.twitter.com/theconjurors
),
Facebook
,
and her website (
www.kristenpham.com
).