Born of Shadow - Book 1 (complete)

1st Chapter of The Bloodstone Prophecy

Here's a Sneak Peek of the first chapter of THE BLOODSTONE PROPHECY, the sequel to BORN OF SHADOW.

Kami stumbled behind the others blindly. Tears filled her eyes, and she dashed them away furiously. What a lousy moment to cry. She could see the vague forms in front of her as they hurried through the Shadow Queen's cave—her badly injured grandfather being supported by Samuel. Chris followed closely behind with a shadow whip in one hand and a laser saber in the other, peering back occasionally to make sure she was okay and to see if any shadow creatures were chasing them.

So far, she saw nothing.

She heard a rumble and the ground shook. Tiny shards of rock fell and pelted her body with a hundred stings. She slipped on the debris and fell down, landing hard on the floor of the cave. The rocks pierced her hands and knees. Scrambling to her feet and ignoring the pain that sliced through her, she caught up to the others.

An eerie howling echoed through the cave and sent chills up Kami's spine. They moved even faster, and she readied her laser saber for whatever might be coming.

C'mon, c'mon, Kami thought as they pressed forward. She heard a rustling on her right, not far behind her. Turning her head, she tried to make out a figure in the gloom but couldn't. She faced forward again.

Kami saw a feeble light in the distance. If they could only make it out of the cave before anything caught up to them, they might have a chance. Gedo and Samuel must have seen it as well, as they picked up their pace.

Wax droplets fell on her head, her face, her arms, her hands. She tried to wipe them away, but they stubbornly clung to her skin.

A whooshing sound swept through the cave and Kami felt a blast of air smash into her back. She staggered forward and barely caught herself from falling. Balance regained, she ran toward the entrance. Samuel struggled to help Kami's Gedo as they rushed past the milky white stalagmites, closer and closer to the light in a frantic attempt to escape the darkness that pressed in on them. Almost there. Just a bit further.

As Kami brushed past Chris, he grabbed her arm. She turned and looked.

Moonlight streamed into the cave, illuminating the floor and walls. She couldn't immediately discern what Chris was pointing at. She strained her eyes. There, she could see them now—eyes. Two sets of glowing beady red eyes that stared at them intently. The eyes moved and her heart sank. She recognized their shapes, the contours of giant bats with wingspans at least 8 feet.

The shapeshifters had followed them.

"Go!" Chris yelled to the others. Kami flicked on her laser saber and stood by Chris. There was no way these shadow creatures were getting to her Gedo.

She glanced over her shoulder. Samuel and Gedo were nearing the entrance. She faced the shapeshifters.

They swooped in at the same time, heading straight for her and Chris. An image of Gedo screaming in agony flashed through her mind. She thought of the bat wrapping itself around her Gedo, of the nasty injuries that covered his body. She pointed her laser saber at the bat and closed her eyes tightly as it flew near. A great rush of air blew her hair back and she could hear a frantic flapping. She opened her eyes slowly to see the bat only a couple feet away in front of her, impaled by the light. The beam from the laser saber seemed to be stopping it, but the strain from holding the bat away from her was tremendous. She gritted her teeth and held tightly to the saber with both hands.

A blast of green electricity crackled through the air. The bats shrieked as Chris whipped them, again and again. Kami could see he was having a difficult time wielding both the saber and the whip, so she reached a hand out.