The Obsidian Throne
Michelle Soper
Copyright © 2020 Michelle Soper
All rights reserved.
The Obsidian Throne is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places,and incidents either arethe product of the author’s imaginationor are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Cover design:wyndagger
Author photo: Vixen Pin-upPhotography
vixenpinupphotography.com
First edition
www.michellesoper.rocks
Acknowledgements
I would like to sincerely thank my family for their continued and enthusiastic support, especially my husband Cam and our children Connor, Cade, and Collin. Cam, I appreciate the many, many hours you spent listening to me obsess over the daily lives of my characters. Now please finish your readthrough of the next one!
A big shout-out to my brother Brian Cohoon and his wife, Jeanine. I’m forever thankful for the happy dance you both did when we got the concept cover art.
Thanks to my other brother Bruce Cohoon and his wife, Kim. I couldn’t do it without all your encouragement! Love you guys!
Thank you to Jen Ramo for taking time out to help my first novel get the editorial attention it deserved! I promise to give you much more time next time, though I can’t make any promises about the nagging. ;)
A picture is worth a thousand words, or, in this case, more than 80,000. I was so fortunate to find a fantastic artist who is such a pleasure to work with, especially when I’m fretting in the middle of the night! A huge thank you to wyndagger.
To the lovely ladies at Vixen Pin-Up Photography, thank you so much for taking what is usually a stressful experience for me and making it fun!
Lastly, to all of the friends who gave me continuous words of encouragement along the way, I am hugely thankful. You are all simply the best!
For Connor, Cade, Collin, Steven, Phoebe, Evelyn, and Marcus.
Chapter 1
Nev intensely scanned the settlement in the valley below through her spyglass. As there were neither falls nor serenity to be found within its boundaries, Serenity Falls was a complete misnomer. That was true even before the seemingly unending rainy season, or the empire’s political trouble befell it. This settlement’s sorry state was a scene mirrored across Obsidia over the last three decades. The price for the lack of steady rule had been paid by the people and land.
Nev had been patiently waiting for dusk to draw near. The mandatory curfew at nightfall would make navigating the town unseen significantly easier. Dodging undue attention was a lesson she had learned well over her life. However, the cost of remaining unknown, unattached, and undetected had been high. Being constantly isolated and on edge left her with a heavy burden to bear alone. Peering up at the darkening sky, she breathed in deeply. She was desperate to wash the scars of her past from her thoughts. Nev let her mind focus on feeling each drop of rain land on her skin for several minutes before returning to the task of scanning the happenings below.
The spyglass pressed tightly to her eye yielded little useful information. The heavy rain made it difficult to make out much of any real detail. Still, she watched the inhabitants go about their business for many long minutes. She was searching intently for something, anything that would sway her from her current course of action.
With a heavy sigh, she lowered the spyglass and reflexively wiped the rain from her brow. For Nev, it felt like it had been raining for years. She found it fitting that the dark and gloomy weather reflected her current mood. It was, after all, the catalyst for the current situation she now found herself. Well, that and the arrow.
The thought caused her to shift uncomfortably on the rocky ledge overlooking the valley. She gingerly flexed her left arm as she extended the spyglass out over the ridge. Pain raced through the length of her arm. The intense discomfort, almost causing her grip to release the spyglass. She breathed in sharply and closed her eyes, unsuccessfully attempting to push back the pain. The wound she hadn’t let herself look at for the past two days had no doubt grown severely infected. She could tell by the smell, even though the wound remained hidden beneath her impromptu bandaging.
With her right hand, she secured the spyglass in her bag and pulled out a small glass vial with a cork stopper. She held it close to her face and squinted as she gently shook it and stared at the minuscule bits of dried, green plant material still clinging to the sides. She let out a defeated sigh and placed the vial back in her pack. Quick and quiet, she thought. Pulling her dark green cloak snug around her, she lifted its hood over her head and began her careful and purposeful descent.
Her anxiety built as she traveled the mile down the rocky embankment, moving closer to the settlement. It had been a prosperous trading town, but now was struggling to survive. The outskirts were surrounded by rocky cliffs on two sides, with the remaining lined by forests. A single, main road exited the settlement. It was a path Nev was careful to avoid. Just outside the town, Nev felt an energy coming from the amulet she always wore. Holding it close to her face, Nev examined it and saw a dim purple light was glowing from it. She’d only seen it behave that way once before, but she had been holding it and focusing on it at the time. Why it was suddenly glowing independently, Nev didn’t know, nor did she have time to ponder it for long. Tucking the amulet back under her shirt, Nev pushed herself to reach her destination swiftly.
She moved with a silent and focused determination through Serenity Fall’s twisting alleys. The marketplace would be at the heart of the settlement. Navigating its corridors left Nev feeling, as usual, uncomfortable
