Chaos Born: A Sci-Fi Menage Romance (Warriors of the Seven Stars Book 2) Read online

  Chaos Born:

  A Sci-Fi Ménage Romance

  Warriors of the Seven Stars Book 2

  By Kallista Dane

  Copyright October 2018 Chaos Born by Kallista Dane

  All rights reserved. This copy is intended for the original purchaser of this e-book ONLY. No part of this e-book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without prior written permission from the author. The only exception is by a reviewer, who may quote short excerpts in a review.

  Please don’t participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted material. It’s a violation of the author’s rights.

  Published in the United States of America

  This e-book is a work of fiction. While references might be made to actual historical events or existing locations, the names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  A huge thank you to Kate Richards from Wizards in Publishing. Not only are you a great editor, your dedication to your craft and sharp eye for every detail keeps my heroes from making embarrassing moves during all those love scenes!

  Jaycee DeLorenzo from Sweet ‘n Spicy Designs, thank you so much! Once again you’ve done a fantastic job with this cover.

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  Table of Contents

  FREE book

  The Scroll

  Prologue

  Chapter One

  Chapter two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Chapter Fourteen

  Chapter Fifteen

  Chapter Sixteen

  Chapter Seventeen

  Chapter Eighteen

  Chapter Nineteen

  Chapter Twenty

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Sneak Peek - Tempest Born: Warriors of the Seven Stars Book 3

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  A Note from Kallista

  About the Author

  More Hot Romances by Kallista Dane

  The Scroll

  Ohhh! Great warrior.

  Wars not make one great.

  Yoda

  The Empire Strikes Back

  Prologue

  Magnus

  Water.

  I needed water. Craved it with every desiccated cell in my body.

  “You bitch!” I croaked, my throat too parched to shout out loud. “I can’t go any farther. I know you can hear me. I’m dying! I need water!”

  “Keep climbing.”

  Her voice floated down to me. I looked up, saw her dangling a flask over the edge of the cliff. “There’s water aplenty here. Come and get it.”

  With a roar, I forced my weary arms to reach up. Found a crevice so tiny only my fingertips fit in it. Blind rage gave me the will to contract the muscles in my trembling legs one more time, pushing me up and gaining another precious foot. By the Goddess, I vowed I’d get to the top, rip that flask from her bony fingers and drain it, then wring her scrawny neck.

  I’d already trudged miles through a barren wasteland. Two full days and nights without rest, except when my shaking legs refused to carry me any further and I collapsed in a heap on the ground. Time after time, I staggered to my feet and went on.

  My meager supply of water ran out early on. There were no lakes or streams flowing here. No wells. No trees or plants. Not even a sign life had ever existed here, except the skeletons of doomed creatures lying in the dust. Creatures that ventured too far into this gods-forsaken place. It was the sight of those that gave me the determination to go on. If I didn’t, my own bones would soon be bleaching in the sun beside them.

  I knew my only hope for survival was to find her. I headed east, navigating by the sun and the stars. Go east. That was all she told me before dumping me here.

  Once I’d been in the lap of luxury. Well fed, well rested. The pampered only son of indulgent parents, with older sisters who doted on me. One day I’d take over my father’s holdings. Live the life of a lord.

  But I wanted more. I read the tales penned by our forefathers and dreamed of glory. Of fighting epic battles, like the heroes of old. Of winning fame and adulation. With the arrogance of youth, I sent my wish out into the Universe. Well, not so much a wish, perhaps, as a demand.

  “I will be the greatest warrior alive. The greatest warrior in the history of the World of the Seven Stars.”

  The Universe blessed me and granted my wish. And I learned why the ancients used the same symbol for curse and blessing, only reversed.

  I’d met the oracle for the first time right before she dumped me in the wilderness. At sixteen, I’d convinced my parents to let me take a trip to the city for a few days. Alone. I was eager to venture out. Explore the world. With a purse full of coins and the arrogance of youth, I was sure no harm could come to me. After all, I was already the size of a grown man, with years of training in sword and staff.

  I rode into the city, stabled my horse, and went out to see the sights. The streets were jammed. Elegantly dressed ladies, trailed by servants laden with packages, laborers hauling materials to dozens of new building sites, well-dressed men striding along two by two with their heads together, plotting their next business deal.

  And everywhere, shops and stalls piled with a dazzling array of goods. I stopped at one, set up outdoors under an awning to shade it from the sun. A multicolored wisp of silk caught my eye, and I decided to surprise my mother with a gift.

  “How much is that scarf?”

  “Ah, for you, young sir, I make a special price.” The old crone behind the counter picked it up, put it in my hands. “Just feel. So soft. And so colorful! Your lady love will cherish it.”

  “I don’t have a lady love,” I said. “It’s for my mother.”

  “What a fine son to give a gift like this! Your mother must be proud to have such a thoughtful and kind young man.” She gave me a wink. “Better buy another. A lad as handsome as you will soon have his pick of fair maidens.”

  I shook my head. “I have no time for dalliances. I’m in training to become a warrior.”

  “A warrior!” Her wrinkled face lit up with a smile, showing a few missing teeth. “A worthy goal and a brave one. Tell me, my lad, what sort of training do you do?”

  “I spar twice weekly with the best swordsman in the county. He says I’m his prize student. And I work out every day. Strength training, endurance.”

  “Strength and endurance for the body. Those are necessary. And swordsmanship a must.” She looked me up and down, as though appraising horseflesh. “And how do you train your heart and soul?”

  “Heart and soul?” I shrugged and pulled out some coins. What did an old woman know of the ways of a warrior? I was raised to be polite to the elderly but the sooner I paid her, the sooner I c
ould be finished with this conversation and on my way to adventure.

  “A great warrior needs heart. He must love someone – or something –- more than himself. His brothers in battle, his woman, his homeland. That is where he summons the strength to keep on fighting when every weary fiber of his being cries out to surrender.”

  I nodded. That sounded like something from one of the epic tales I’d read.

  “And soul,” she went on. “The connection with a force greater than our mortal self. For spirit will prevail when all else is gone. Strength can fail; endurance will dissipate given enough time. A heart can be broken by betrayal. Tell me, young lad – do you have the soul of a warrior?”

  I answered with the brash confidence of youth. “Yes.”

  She gave me a crafty smile. Rummaging on the table before her, she pulled out a stone amulet on a silver chain. Rubbed it against her sagging bosom to clean the dust from it.

  “Take this.” She pressed it into my hand. “When you are truly ready to become the greatest warrior in our world, you need but hold it in the palm of your hand, look up at the Seven Stars, and say, ‘Test me. Train me.’”

  I took it. Anything to get away from her. I tried to pay her for it, but she refused. “It is a gift, Magnus,” she said solemnly. “Not from me but from the Goddess I serve. She has chosen you among all men. Deemed you worthy to rise to the ranks of hero one day, your name a legend – if you develop the heart and soul to become a great warrior.”

  “How do you know my name?” I stared at her suspiciously.

  “I know many things. The Goddess has shown me the Akashic records, the golden tablets on which are written the secrets of the Universe.”

  I looked into the cold black pools of her eyes. Despite the heat of the day, a chill ran down my spine. “Who are you?”

  “My name matters not. Truth be told, I forgot it centuries ago. I am known now only as the Oracle.”

  Centuries ago? Messages from the Goddess? The old lady was mad. I threw a handful of coins at her, grabbed the scarf and hurried away, without realizing I still clutched the amulet in my hand.

  I wandered the city for hours. Finally, hunger drove me into a tavern where I ordered my evening meal and a mug of ale to wash it down. Both were delivered by a buxom blonde wench with a winning smile. I flirted with her outrageously, though she was probably twice my age. To my astonishment, as I was leaving she whispered she’d love to meet me at midnight, after her work was done.

  I tipped her lavishly then dashed outside and down the street to a traveler’s inn I’d passed, where I rented a room so we’d have a comfortable bed nearby. I wanted my first sexual encounter to last for hours, rather than having to back her against a wall and lift her skirt for a quick fuck in a dark alley. Then I headed back outside to roam the streets till it was time for our meeting. The combination of nerves and a hard-on gave me boundless energy.

  I ended up in a part of town I hadn’t seen before, where the streets were dark and nearly deserted. I’d been spending my time dreaming of the evening to come, making up fantasies culled from bits and pieces of every dirty story I’d heard from older, experienced males. When I stuck my hand in my pocket to rearrange the bulge in my pants, I found the amulet.

  In my excitement, I’d forgotten all about the old crone and her odd gift. I pulled it out to examine it. The silver chain was tarnished with age, nearly worthless. The amulet looked just as old. A metal disc surrounding a lump of rock. I nearly tossed it in the gutter, but something caught the light from a flickering torch in the doorway of a cheap rooming house nearby.

  The object was filthy, despite the old lady’s attempt to clean it. I spat on the amulet and rubbed away some of the grime. To my surprise, a faceted stone was set in the heart of the rock. It looked for all the world like the diamond in a necklace father had given my mother on their last anniversary, only bigger.

  I looked up at the Seven Stars, shining bright, and remembered the old lady’s words.

  To this day, I don’t know why I did it. Perhaps I was saying goodbye to my childhood belief in magic and myths, for after this night I’d truly be a man. Whatever the reason, I laid the amulet in the palm of my hand, looked up into the heavens and sent the message.

  “Test me, Goddess. Train me to be the mightiest warrior in the World of the Seven Stars.”

  The next moment, I found myself alone in a barren wilderness, with no idea how I’d gotten there. My first thought was that I’d been conked on the head and robbed by street thugs then dumped at the edge of town. But when I checked, my pouch full of coins was still tucked into a hidden pocket in the waistband of my trousers.

  I thought I saw a figure in the distance, so I headed that way, hoping to find someone who could tell me where I was. I had to get back. It was nearly midnight, and my lusty tavern wench would soon be waiting for me.

  To my shock, when I drew near, I saw it was the old woman. The Oracle, she’d called herself.

  “Where am I? How did I get here?”

  “You’re in a training camp for mighty warriors. My training camp.” She tossed a bundle at my feet. “Supplies. You’ll need them. Head east.”

  I bent down to pick it up. When I lifted my head, she’d vanished.

  I whirled around in a circle, but she was gone. The barren ground offered no hiding place, strewn with rocks that barely came up to my shins.

  “Wait! Come back! I have to get to town. I’ll pay you well,” I added, out of sheer desperation. My words were carried away by the night wind.

  She knew my name. Perhaps she was part of an elaborate plot to kidnap me and hold me for ransom. After all, my father was a wealthy man. But how did she do it? How did she get me here, in the middle of nowhere, in the blink of an eye?

  That’s when I started to laugh. This was all a dream. An elaborate nightmare fueled by fears and fantasies. I hadn’t gone to the city. I’d leave on the morrow.

  Navigating by the Seven Stars, an unremarkable talent possessed by every schoolboy in our kingdom, I headed east, determined to see what other adventures awaited me in my sleep.

  When the sun rose, reality set in. This was no dream. In every direction, as far as the eye could see, a layer of dust covered the ground. Soil baked dry by the heat of the sun. No sign of civilization.

  The first day, anger propelled me forward. I’d find that old crone and make her pay. I’d been so close to losing my virginity – and to an older woman at that, one who could teach me all manner of wicked acts. I cursed the bitch with every step.

  By midday, half my water was gone, along with most of the single loaf she’d given me. There was still no sign of human habitation, and I decided I’d better ration the rest of my supplies carefully.

  That night, I shivered uncontrollably. The night air was cold against my sunburned skin. When the sun rose, I was grateful for its warmth – until it sat high in the sky. Scorching me once again with its blistering rays.

  My steps slowed then stopped. I was exhausted. Out of water. I couldn’t go on. I’d die here in this wilderness, and my mother would never know what happened to me. I’d never feel her arms around me again, never see her sweet smile. I loved her so much. I couldn’t bear the thought that she might think I ran away rather than return home. It would break her heart.

  I fell to my knees, sobbing.

  It could have been hours. It could have been only minutes. But once my tears were spent, I heard the old woman’s voice in my head. A great warrior loves someone – or something - more than himself. That is where he summons the strength to keep on fighting when every weary fiber of his being cries out to surrender.

  That’s when I remembered the scarf I’d bought for my mother. I fumbled in my pocket for it. Wrapped it around my head to shield me from the brutal rays, hauled myself to my feet, and stumbled on.

  The cliffs appeared in the distance late on the second day, covering the horizon from north to south. The closer I got, the taller the
y rose. It was night again by the time I reached the face. That’s when I heard her shrill voice coming from high above.

  “About time you got here. Come on up.”

  Up? I’d never climbed anything taller than the hills around our home. The sheer rock face had to be a hundred feet high. Two hundred. Half out of my mind with exhaustion and thirst, I collapsed on the ground, shaking my head.

  “Are you a warrior? Or a weakling?”

  She taunted me mercilessly all the way up. All through the night. Dawn was breaking when I finally hauled myself over the edge, every muscle in my body trembling with fatigue. She’d disappeared again but left the flask along with bread and cheese and meat wrapped in a cloth.

  I ate and drank my fill then dragged myself to the shelter of a tree and slept like the dead for hours. The young are resilient and when I woke, I was ready to track the old bitch down and exact my revenge.

  To my surprise, I was on a wide green plateau. Trees dotted the landscape here and there. In the distance, in the middle of a flower-filled meadow, stood an ancient stone temple topped with a golden dome. As I drew near, I saw a wide flight of stone steps leading to bronze doors easily twenty feet high.

  Despite having been tutored by learned scholars, I’d never heard of this temple. Nor had I seen anything so grand in our modern-day world. Awed, I mounted the steps and ventured inside.

  I’d slept most of the day and by the time I got to the temple, dusk had fallen. The interior was cool and dark, without a source of natural light except for a few stars I glimpsed through a circle in the center of the dome, open to the heavens. The structure was much larger than it looked from outside. Flickering torches set high on the walls stretched far into the distance.