ENCHANTED WORLD SERIES BOOK 1: POSSESSED BY LORD MAGE

“So, did you really plan on beheading Ethinia?” Drake asked quietly as he crossed his arms over his massive chest.

Tyran thought about it. He was angry at the way such a young female would dare to talk to her queen like that. Ethinia was walking on thin ice and Tyran was glad when Noelle stood up and objected to him. He needed that because he wasn’t about to ruin a family that was already in ruins. The Ferson family was one of the oldest court members of the Realm of Spells. They were pure blood Mage and honed great wisdom and power. Tyran trusted them because they were trusted by his father and his grandfather before that but in last century a lot of rumor began to break down this once strong family.

Greed tore Ferson and his wife apart because she felt he was not high enough in the power ladder to support her. Since they were not true mates, she was able to walk away without having the mate bond locking her in place. There were rumors that she crossed over to the Human Realm where she met someone new. Ferson was heartbroken but he continued on and survived for his children. The moment his older son Lionel became of age, Ferson stepped down at the court member of the District of Hiras and appointed it to his son.

Tyran was very proud of Lionel because at a young age, the male showed maturity in all matters. He was also a very good warrior and at times Tyran caught him practicing with his warriors. It was unheard of that the Nobles took such actions and at the beginning everyone was uneasy because Lionel was the king’s voice in his District but as time passed they all discovered that Lionel was most stubborn and he would not let his title stop him from doing what he wanted.

The night Lionel lost his sight haunted Tyran over and over again. He took to the front line. He was ready for anything and that kind of courage from him reminded Tyran so much of himself when he was younger.

He could never forget the split-second warning flash of the deadly blade wielded by a battle-forged Fae warrior as he sliced in the air, charging the particles with its power and heading straight for Lionel’s face. Tyran roared as he charged towards the male but it was too late. The blade sliced across his eyes and so much blood spurted from them.

Lionel’s agonizing cry chilled every part of his body as he absent-mindedly beheaded the Fae responsible with one hand while catching the crumpling body of the most courageous noble male he had ever known with the other.

The healers tried to heal as best as they could but the blade was poisoned and Lionel’s sight couldn’t be restored.

If that wasn’t enough ruin for this one family jumping from one tragedy to another then what was? He couldn’t ruin them by killing Ethinia.

“No.” Tyran answered softly, the guilt inside him exploding in his veins.

Drake sighed as if he was holding his breath waiting for his reply. “She’s young and naïve. She needs a strong hand if she’s going to be the Noble of Hiras.”

Ruvin smiled wickedly. “I haven’t met this elusive Ethinia yet but I don’t mind being her strong hand.”

“It’s that kind of talk that always gets you into trouble, Ruvin.” Zach elbowed him. “Just keep your lurid thoughts to yourself.”

“Hey!” Ruvin rubbed the pain away from his side. “I was just kidding.”

“Right, everyone get off your asses and get the hell out of my office. I have tons of work to do before heading for the city today and you three fuck-ups are not helping me.” Tyran banged his fist on his table.

Ruvin back-flipped over the sofa and saluted before he grinned and he winked then disappeared. Zach rolled his eyes but he too saluted and followed Ruvin. Drake took a moment and turned to Tyran.

“If these are the same dragons that were in Kruk’s pack then I want in when they have been located. I will not have them destroy the little peace we’ve had for centuries by their foolish actions.”

Tyran gave Drake a nod.

Drake nodded back and went out.

Tyran never understood how Drake became so strong in the middle of it all. He was disowned by the man he called his father for such a long time. He was forced to kill this father figure. It was either that or let him continue his purification of the dragon bloodlines by murdering the half-bloods. He was on the losing end no matter who he chose but Tyran believed that it was easy for Drake to choose what was right because he was there with him. Tyran fought beside Drake and that was evidence that although he was going to lose his father, he still had his best friend beside him.

Tyran smiled lightly when he remembered the young inexperienced late-bloomer Drake was and how that changed so much with time and made him a hard ass. Still, this new information was going to open up old wounds for him but Tyran wanted to make sure that again, Drake wasn’t going to face these old ghosts alone

Noelle entered the warrior’s infirmary with Ethinia beside her. During their walk to this part of the fortress, Noelle learned that Ethinia loved the night life, especially clubbing and dancing. She also loved shopping and telling by her gown, she had an expensive taste. She was a designer-label girl and that meant she got only the most exclusive, expensive and rare stuff.

Unlike in the human world where the expensive stuff was made by famous designers but the materials used were the same for all; cotton, silk, satin, synthetics such as nylons, for the enchanted world, nothing was synthetic. The grade of the price depended much on how rare the material was. The most expensive of clothes were made out of tirk, a material from the Realm of Water that shone like fish scales in the sun. Then there was silan, lynak, obrisinia, grisal and camilan from the different Realms. Ethinia’s favorite was the obrisinia that changed with light into different shades of the color used on the material.

She was an interesting young woman with hopes and dreams. She reminded her so much of herself when she was younger and a dreamer.

“My queen!” The petite dark haired woman Noelle noted in Lady Lyrah’s room the other day go up and bowed quickly.

“This is the second time we are meeting yet I don’t know your name.” Noelle smiled lightly.

Don’t ask the helper to return in here. My heart sinks with dread every time I feel her presence.

She remembered Lady Lyrah state about this young female. She didn’t want to be mean but she felt that sinking feeling too. Why would such a lovely young female have such an effect of them like that?

“Olena, my queen.” She bowed her head and kept her eyes on the floor.

Such submission made Noelle’s skin crawl. Was this how Tyran wanted her? He could hold his breath for eternity for all she cared because she was never going to give him such power over her like that.

But he already has power over your body...it’s only a matter of time before he has power over your heart. A small annoying voice reminded her. She swiped it away and turned her attention to the female in front of her. “Well, nice to meet you, Olena. I would like you to take us to where Commander Storm is being treated.”

Both Olena and Ethinia gasped.

“I will not advise it, my queen. I heard the Commander is still dangerous.” Ethinia twisted her hands nervously.

“He’s only dangerous when he senses danger. Olena, please lead the way.” Noelle said.

Olena shook her head lightly. “No, my queen--”

“Alright then, I’ll find him myself.” Noelle stepped around Olena and made her way through the large hall full of empty beds to the private rooms at the back.

“Wait for me!” Ethinia called and ran after her.

Storm would never harm anyone if they didn’t pose a threat. Noelle assured herself though she was terrified to come face to face with his Leo again.

Noelle peeped through the glass doors until finally she found the brown haired, amber eyed Leo. She took a deep breath and opened the door.

Immediately, the amber eyes snapped her direction. She stopped abruptly and waited until Storm’s stiffened muscles relaxed.

“My queen.” He rasped as he tried to get up and bow.

Noelle rushed forward and placed her hands on his bare shoulders. She forced him back on the bed and smiled. “It is not necessary. You are too weak to move.”

“If I knew you were coming to visit, I would have asked the nurse to get me ready for the occasion.” He smiled but his eyes were still clouded with pain.

Noelle could only laugh but she couldn’t ignore the fact that Storm had a fever. “When was the last time the healer checked on your wounds?”

Storm frowned. “Last night. After that she had Olena bring me food and check for my vitals.”

“He doesn’t look well my queen.” Ethinia made her presence known.

“Go get me some warm water, healing cream and fresh bandages. Tell Olena to prepare some chicken soup and bread for Storm.”

Storm couldn’t help but smile. “No offense my queen but I’m a Leo. I’m carnivorous. I don’t do well with bread.”

Noelle’s cheeks pinked. Of course he like bread ! What was she thinking. “Oh, in that case, tell her to add a lot of chicken in the soup. Also see if there is a healer nearby who can perform a healing session for him.”

“Right away.” Ethinia exited the room.

“I wanted to thank you for what you did for me and my Leo the other day but also reprimand you for such a dare on your life to a pureblood beast.” Storm’s eyes churned wildly.

Noelle rolled her eyes. “Oh, you don’t have to do the reprimanding. I had plenty of that from Lord Mage to last me a lifetime! But if it ever happens again, I’ll still do it.”

Storm laughed and rested back on the bed.

Noelle frowned slightly when she saw blood pooling around the wound on his side. For a pureblood beast like him, Storm’s wounds should have closed up by now. Seriously, what was the healer thinking by leaving this gravely wounded male alone? She was going to have a long talk with the female afterwards.

“We need to change those--”

Storm caught her hand in a firm grip. “It’s not my queen’s job to take care of my wounds.”

Noelle snapped her hand away in fury. “Well, you’ll just have to settle with me since there is no one else here. Now, raise your arm.”

Again, Storm smiled. “I’ve had rumors about your stubborn streak but never thought of experiencing it first hand.”

“You should consider yourself lucky that it’s only my stubbornness that you have to deal with. Hand. Up. Now.” Noelle narrowed her eyes at the feral Leo.

Storm sighed and raised his hand. He flinched a little when he stretched the wound.

Noelle reached for the pair of scissors on the side table and began to cut away the bloodied bandages.

“Do you remember of what really happened on the attack?” she asked quietly.

Storm stiffened again. She didn’t want him to relive the horror of that day but she really needed to know what happened. She needed to know if her uncle was behind the attack, if he had somehow convinced some of the Fae to support him on his fool’s quest. “Yes, my queen.”

“Was Ron there when the attack happened?” Noelle stopped halfway and looked up at Storm. She was afraid he might confirm it.

Her uncle was seriously sick in the head but she never thought he would be sick enough to try and take over the enchanted world. While she loathed him for everything that he was doing, a small part of her believed that maybe he was set up...that maybe someone else was pulling the strings. Someone even more dangerous.

“No, it was not the Fae who attacked us. It was Dragons.” Storm stated.

Noelle gasped in terror. “Dragons!”

The last time a Dragon war broke out, half of the population was wiped out. She remembered the stories she heard of Kruk and how he tried to take over the Realm of Fire from queen Malenna. Could it be that he was back? If he was, she feared for everyone’s safety because Kruk was evil to the bone and very strong.

“Yes, six very strong dragons. They killed the entire convoy and we would have died too except--” he stopped abruptly as if he was trying to figure out something. “They stopped after killing the last warrior and as if they were mind-controlled, they flew away.”

“You mean they spared you and Lady Lyrah on purpose?” Noelle asked. “But why? It doesn’t make sense unless it was a message to Lord Mage.”

Storm’s eyes turned molten gold. “It was a declaration of war and Lady Lyrah and I were the messengers of that message.”

Noelle’s hands shook as she tightened her grip on the pair of scissors. What the hell was going on! First the Fae declared war on the Mage. Now the Dragons? What was the world coming to?

“I doubt queen Malenna knows about this. I have a gut feeling that Kruk’s old pack is behind this.” She said vehemently.

“My thoughts exactly. Queen Malenna will never harm the Mage. She’s indebted to Lord Mage.” Storm agreed.

Noelle sighed and continued with her work. “I hope with the meeting that is coming up everything will be sorted out.” She peeled away the soiled bandages just as Ethinia entered with the supplies she had asked but she couldn’t find the Healer. It was strange that Storm’s wounds looked infected. That never happened unless the Dragon claws were poisoned. Due to the enchanted air around them, infections were very rare an mostly occurred through poison or evil enchantments.

Noelle made a mental note to tell the Healer this once she was found.

“Clean your hands, Ethinia and come here for a moment.” Noelle instructed the female.

Though Ethinia hesitated for a moment, Noelle saw the excitement in the young female’s eyes. She quickly washed her hands and stood over her queen.

Noelle instructed her on how to clean the wound while she went to the get some clean linen and towels for Storm.

Several minutes later, she found Ethinia and Storm murmuring silently and sharing laughs. Ethinia’s cheeks were red with blush but her eyes glowed with both excitement and fear. Storm reminded Noelle so much of Ruvin. He was a flirt definitely. She just hoped Ethinia wasn’t naïve enough to fall for those charms especially since she was a Noble Daughter and there was a law against Nobles having affairs with warriors.

She was smiling until she saw the black splotches oozing from Storm’s wounds.

“What is that?” She cringed at the foul smell that came from the tar-like substance.

Ethinia looked up and grinned. “I performed a healing session for him--though I am not as strong--but I was able to remove some of the poison from his system.”

Noelle gave her a little nod though she felt that Storm needed more healing sessions if that was what was making him sick. She helped him get cleaned then went to dispose the dirty cloths while Ethinia dressed his wounds.

“That’s very good work you’ve done there, Ethinia. Thank you.” Noelle inspected the immaculate bandaging of Storm’s wounds.

“I used to do it for Lionel.” She ducked her head to hide her blush but Noelle knew better.

“Well, you have done a very good job here as well.” Noelle assured her then added. “Please help me move him to the chair so that I change his sheets. We don’t want the poison to re-enter your wounds. The faster you heal and quicker to can go back to training.”

Storm grinned. “My Leo, Jiles, is prowling in my head as we speak. He hates the weakness of the body. He wants to be free again.”

“Well, let’s make sure we honor your Leo’s needs before he resurfaces and do some interior design in the infirmary.” Noelle smiled lightly.

After changing the sheets and placing Storm back on the bed, Olena entered with some food. The moment she entered Storm turned to her. He looked uneasy as the female placed the food on the table and disappeared. What was with that girl? Noelle thought to herself.

She and Ethinia stayed in the infirmary until Storm finished eating then Ethinia passed more energy through him, making him more comfortable and removing most of his pain. After that they went out into the garden to the most beautiful greenhouse Noelle had ever seen.

It had roses from the farthest of places. The aromas of the roses made her dizzy with euphoria. They picked up some and headed to Lady Lyrah’s room.

She was up and about, already healing quite fast. A few hours later, Ethinia and Noelle made their way to Tyran’s office.

The closer they got to it, the more Ethinia’s head hung low. Noelle smiled in secret and entered the office with her after a short knock.

As usual, the sight of her Lord Mage was breathtaking. Since when had he become her Lord Mage? She didn’t know but the way his silver eyes twirled at her made a thousand butterflies take flight in her belly.

“My queen.” He got up and moved around his enormous desk towards her.

Noelle swallowed hard and turned to Ethinia. “Ethinia said something today that upset you and should have upset me as well but instead it hurt me. Her actions were punishable because they were against her queen but I decided to take matters into my own hands. I’m not excusing what she did because she did offend me after all but I like her too much to punish her so instead I showed her the person I am and hoped that in time she would forgive me for abandoning my duty as her queen all those years ago.”

“My queen!” Ethinia fell to her knees and braced Noelle’s legs. She wept for the longest time and when it seemed like she will never stop, she looked up and said. “I will never forget your kindness. I was wrong to judge you the way I did. I was angry and let my anger get the best of me but when I spent the day with you today, I learned that you think more of others than yourself and you taught me a lot. I’m sorry for offending you and if it takes me my whole life to make it up to you, I will do so gladly.”

“Well, that’s settled...how about dinner? I hope there won’t be drama from you, Noble daughter.” Tyran quirked his eyebrow at Ethinia.

Ethinia got up and rubbed her eyes with the back of her hands. “No, my king, no drama. Certainly not from me.”

“Good. Please excuse us while I talk to my queen.” He turned to Noelle and she felt her stomach melt to her feet.

“Of course.” Ethinia bowed and went out.

The moment the door clicked, Noelle found herself in Tyran’s strong arms.

“Thank you, Noe.” Tyran rasped as he bunched her hair in his hands directed her head back until her neck was exposed to him.

“What for?” Noelle breathed as she grasped his biceps to gain balance.

“For what you did to save that female. I would never have done what you did for her. Whatever it is that you said or did to her has saved her life—and not from me but from herself.” Tyran bent down and nipped lightly on her neck.

Noelle’s nipples hardened so quickly that they hurt as they pushed against the material of her gown. Traitors! “She told me about her life. It’s so sad. It made me look spoiled and careless.”

“You are spoiled, my queen.” Tyran teased and nipped harder until he got a gasp from her then licked the sting away. “And you were careless--”

“And who’s fault was that?” Noelle moved closer until Tyran’s scorching body was flashed to hers.

“I’m just glad that the drama wasn’t from you today.” He raised his head and kissed Noelle on her lips.

Noelle moaned as she kissed him back. He was melting his way into the parts she didn’t want him to go. What was going to happen when she felt in love with him and he didn’t love her back? A great lover in bed didn’t mean a long term life partner. All that could change and she didn’t want to be that queen who loved her king but her king only lusted after her body.

“By the way....I went to see Storm today.” Noelle whispered between the kiss.

Tyran stiffened as his eyes went feral. “Noe!” he growled but Noelle was already at the door giggling and racing away from him.