Karadas: The Veiled Realm: Dawn of Desolation

By James T Mather

The adventure continues...

Dawn of Desolation is the highly anticipated sequel to Spectre of Destiny. 

In truth, the situation looks bleak. Minnie and Theodore's starry-eyed dream of returning to England is rapidly turning into a full-blown nightmare. 

Set upon at every turn by a ho

• Language: English
• Publisher: J. T. Mather
• Release date: Dec 2, 2022
• ISBN: 9781838064839

James T Mather

James T Mather lives in Nottinghamshire, U.K. Karadas: The Veiled Realm, Spectre of Destiny is his debut young adult fantasy adventure story. He enjoys watching and reading fantasy, exploring the countryside with his partner, son, and siblings, tennis, football, and crazy golf. James volunteers for the Wildlife Trust U.K. (and he has a curious fascination with insects!) Visit him at www.jtmather.com and www.instagram.com/j_t_mather to stay in touch.

Book preview

Chapter 1 • The Titan's wrath

Dawn crept silently into the world, just as it had the previous day and every day before that, turning the black night sky to a pale pink-grey. A few stars lingered for a time, only to melt away as the eastern horizon grew ever brighter.

In that moment, however, no attention was paid to the heavens. Instead, Theodore, Minnie, and their Borini companions looked along the rocky wall of the ravine, gaping with unblinking eyes at the godlike creature bursting free from its stone prison; to Nylos, the two-hundred foot Titan, forged long ago from shimmering black obsidian, interwoven with the dynamic sorcery of powerful spellbinders.

It's moving! Minnie screamed. Strands of damp red hair clung to her face. That's impossible… how can rock move? Her thoughts, as well as her nerves, were a blur. She was no stranger to fear—on Karadas at least—but the deep, dark terror now sweeping through her body eclipsed anything she had experienced during her twelve years of life. The chances of her making it to a thirteenth birthday dwindled with each passing second. We should never have come here.

She and her older brother clung to one another, paralysed, utterly powerless. The Borini beside them masked their own dismay for a time, but even their valour had limits. Neither Zilic, nor his Uncle Olenious, had ever come close to facing a foe such as this. No living creature in the realm had.

The earth trembled, and a rumbling groan echoed around the ravine. Nylos emerged on legs as thick as castle turrets, ploughing through the debris and shattered rock underfoot to send a wave rolling over the water. The Titan's stride was immense. Steam rose in plumes from the reservoir with each colossal step, hissing and boiling on contact with his super-heated limbs.

What do we do? Theodore cried. Zilic, what do we do?

There was nothing any of them could do. An entire vanguard of armoured knights, even a platoon of mounted infantry, would be powerless against such utter dominance.

Neup scurried up and down the wall nearby, striking the rocks with two powerful mandibles and scraping at the stone with six spiny limbs. The Terap's attempt at a distraction went completely ignored. Equally overlooked were the arrows loosed from Zilic's bow. Each shaft ricocheted feebly off the Titan's solid midriff, inflicting no damage whatsoever—not even a scratch. Nylos remained focused solely on the boy thief; the gem snatcher, the unwitting soul charged with plundering the Last Sanctum for the Zeon Stone.

The water outlet, Olenious yelled, finally finding his voice. Even on their knees, the children were a good inch taller than either Borini. They followed the point of his finger to the far end of the reservoir to see a slender crevice at the base of the wall. Make for the outlet. It is our only hope!

They hesitated only for a second. Minnie and Theodore leapt from the ledge and down to the water with their matching turquoise cloaks streaming behind them, clutching their quivers and bows. The pair swam hard, summoning every modicum of energy remaining to them, thrashing at the surface with weary arms and legs, desperate to reach the safety of the outlet. Zilic abandoned his futile assault to join the others in the water. Overlooked and seemingly irrelevant, Neup clambered up and away from danger.

A flock of geese emerged through the first dim glimmers of the morning, homing in on the reservoir, only to turn skyward at the last moment in a cacophony of honks and beating wings. Every bird recoiled at the tower of billowing steam and the Titan in its midst. They wanted no part of this frightful drama.

The water outlet made for a tight fit, choked with bramble and splintered timber beams. The friends squeezed in together, fighting their way over and under the chaotic build-up of debris washing in, praying that every inch forward would bring them closer to an unlikely escape.

Nylos covered the ground swiftly, far quicker than any of them would have believed. With each stride, the heat intensified. The air grew heavy, and the water simmered, kindled by the energy emanating from the Titan's body. Molten rock seeped from the creature's great fiery eye, spitting and seething, splashing down into the reservoir to produce potent, sulphurous fumes.

Minnie screeched. Rats! She felt their foul, oily fur brush against her skin. Get away… get away from me! A dozen came first, petrified, spurred on by the fearsome heat. A hundred more followed, appearing from nowhere, funnelling through the outlet, screeching and scratching, each more desperate than the next to flee. Her brother gagged, repulsed by the putrid stench accompanying them.

Nylos clattered the ravine wall with a blunted arm the size of an age-old oak to send flint shards exploding into the air. Boom. The rock face quivered as another blow landed. Thud.

Dread immediately turned to blind panic. Dust, grit, and gravel streamed down through the widening cracks above. I can't get any further in! The others could barely hear Theodore's voice through the scrape and grind of splintering rock.

An obsidian arm rose into the ever-brightening sky once again, ready to pummel the rock face for a third time, determined to obliterate the boy thief cowering within.

Minnie and Theodore were stunned. Their bodies ached and their lungs gasped for a desperate gulp of air. Olenious and Zilic fared no better. Both were courageous warriors, but this was beyond any peril either could ever have imagined. They each knew that ten thousand tons of solid stone would fall in on their heads at any moment. The water outlet the companions had hoped to be their safe-haven would soon be transformed into their tomb.

As each whispered a final, hushed prayer, the clamour ceased abruptly. The water settled and an eerie hush descended. For what felt like an eternity, their heartbeats and strained, ragged breaths were the only sounds to be heard.

Chapter 2 • Legend of the Kalguera

The only blemish in a boundless blue sky that morning were Eden's white wings, gliding on a breeze above the almost vertical mountainside beyond the walled ravine. The rock face glowed, bathed in sunlight, as if it were clad in strips of hammered bronze and copper.

Quite how the friends had survived the night, not one among them knew for sure. Each had imagined their fates were sealed, that their very lives were forfeit. Unless they now existed in some ghostly afterlife, unbelievably, the company of four remained in the world of the living.

They clung to the mountainside, holding on to rocks and bushes and each other, coughing and spluttering. All four were utterly drenched; the Borini in their tight leather armour and sagging grey cloaks, with the sunlight catching on the silver armour at their chests and shoulders, and the siblings beside them, weighed down by dark woollen breeches and saturated tunics. Moisture dribbled between every fold and stitch. Their black leather boots felt as heavy as stones.

For a long moment, no one spoke.

Eventually, Zilic broke the silence. Are you both unharmed? A red flush tinged the cheeks of his round, bronzed face. Water gushed from the outlet below his boots, dividing into smaller streams and runnels, each one zigzagging down the rocky slope below.

Theodore gave a nod, too dazed to summon any actual words.

What happened? asked Minnie with a croak. It just stopped… like a statue.

It is as you say, said Zilic. Each of them had witnessed it. With no warning, the Titan came to a juddering halt; a lifeless sculpture, utterly static. Below the jagged shards that crowned its mighty head, the fiery eye had billowed with thick dark smog, cooled, and finally faded to black.

Daylight, Olenious offered as a theory, tightening the crimson patch over his left eye. "It may be daylight that caused the Titan to halt."

So, it can't move in the sun? asked Minnie, hoping it could be true.

I can only speculate. We will only know for sure once the sun sets.

What about clouds? Can it move if the sun gets covered up? Minnie looked up, imploring the sky to remain clear that day. For now, she could see only Eden; her faithful feathered friend.

Olenious had no actual answers. None of them did.

I suggest we do not wait to find out, said Zilic. Assumption and speculation will not do for us. Before cloud or nightfall come, we must all be far away from this place.

Water trickled down Theodore's face from the mop of black hair on his head. He grasped at a lifeless tree stump, twisting his body around to look out over the landscape. He could see for miles. The towering Moritano Mountains ran directly south to his left like the wall of a colossal fortress, grey, rugged, and mournful. Ancient evergreen woodland coated the lower slopes and foothills, dashed here and there with scree slopes and enormous slabs of discarded rock. A wide valley stretched far to the south and into smaller dales and wooded glens further to the west, partially concealed under a blanket of dense morning mist.

South. We should head south, Olenious offered.

Minnie frowned. Why south?

One Zeon Stone will not be enough, and as of yet, we do not know the location of the other two. We require assistance.

What do you suggest, Uncle? Zilic asked.

Olenious gazed out from the mountainside, wafting a fly away from his ear with the tip of his oak staff. If they exist, we should seek the Kalguera. It is said that they are an honest folk… and friendly to the Guardians of Zell-Ku, if the whispers are to be believed. They may possess valuable knowledge.

Would they help? Minnie asked. Someone has to.

To that, I cannot promise. But we appear to be short of options. The Kalguera are rumoured to dwell where the south and west coasts meet, at the great stone city of Hollowshore.

"But… they have to help," Theodore insisted.

Whatever their choice, Master Reed, it must be honoured. Zilic spoke in a calm tone, looking directly into the boy's blue eyes. The Borini are hardly in a position to instruct others, not while our own people have steered clear of the realm's troubles. We can only hope that the Kalguera see fit to join our cause, to free Karadas from the growing tyranny of the Vorath.

It would be a long journey, Olenious warned. I am well travelled, but only to a point. Neither I, nor Zilicarillion, have ever ventured so far into the realm.

It can't be any more dangerous than staying here, Minnie muttered. We should run a million miles away, she thought. As far away as possible from that awful stone giant!

Theodore nodded and shook the water from his backpack. Minnie's right, he said. "We have to find the other two Zeon Stones. It's our only hope." Eden drifted down to add a shrill cry to the vote.

Very well, said Zilic, tipping his head towards Olenious. We shall make for Hollowshore with all haste. Let us hope that the legend of the Kalguera is indeed true!

Minnie looked around. What about Neup? He's not here.

I mean to go back, said Zilic. Neup shall not be abandoned.

Go back! Theodore instantly regretted his outburst. I'm sorry, Zilic. I know how much Neup means to you. The two were like family.

Then I shall come with you, Zilicarillion.

No, no, not this time, Uncle. I need you to guide our young friends down the mountainside. Neup and I shall catch up to you. You must descend at once. We have no understanding of the Titan. He may remain sedentary for all of eternity, or awaken at any moment.

Theodore tapped at the rock face with the flat of his hand. Even if he does wake up, Nylos still has to get through this. It must be a hundred feet thick… at least. Surely even a Titan couldn't break through.

Quite possibly, but Zilicarillion speaks the truth, said Olenious. Our best hope is to head down and pray that Nylos cannot follow. This mountainside may yet be our salvation. He pivoted to face Zilic. We shall do as you ask. Return to us swiftly.

Minnie chewed fretfully at her thumbnail. Be careful.

Good luck, Zilic. A valiant smile did little to shield Theodore's concerns.

The Borini checked his bow and silver daggers and vanished back inside the outlet, heading directly to where the Titan stood in wait. Static or not, the prospect chilled the sibling deeply.

Olenious let out a steady breath. This way, my friends. He led the way along a slanting, craggy shelf, with his plait of white hair swinging at his back with each downward step.

With the water drained from their boots and their bows and quivers hooked over their shoulders, the children followed. Even after an hour or more, the trio hadn't made it far. At every turn, tufts of waxy grass and loose stones shifted underfoot. Moss covered roots appeared from nowhere to tug at their ankles. With nothing but fresh air to halt their fall, a stumble here would be fatal.

They spoke little on the way down, each contemplating their own worries. Theodore caressed the Zeon Stone in his pocket. I did this, he thought glumly. I took the Zeon Stone… it was me that awoke Nylos. While his actions had undoubtedly unleashed the Titan, neither Minnie nor Olenious would ever think to lay any hint of the blame at his feet. For now, their only notion was to flee.

The mountainside proved almost impossible to navigate. With no clear path to follow, the friends clambered around the tilting trunks of windswept conifers, through tight, damp gullies, and over gushing streams both wide and narrow. Down and down they trekked, as swiftly as they dared, with only flies and an occasional bird or startled rabbit for company.

"This could actually be worse than the Jurkoon Desert!" Minnie groaned, mostly to herself. She winced as another thistle poked at her leg. For the first time in days—perhaps for the first time ever—she almost wished to be back with Aunt Cordelia; their reluctant guardian. If not for the calamitous mishap aboard the Titanic, she and her brother would surely be exploring the city of New York by now. Perhaps with a friend, too. A new friend, she thought wistfully. A best friend.

Theodore noted the sadness in her eyes. The smile and the dimples he was so fond of had both become a rare sight recently; more than understandable in their predicament. Each day since becoming marooned on Karadas, grave danger was never far away, with only the memories of their old life to drive them on.

Back in England, nothing had ever tried to squish them or eat them, or lock them up in a wheeled cart. Dreams of days spent in the countryside with the sun on their faces and the wind in their hair tugged at their hearts. Neither had a care in the world back then. Even so, after their parents passing, Corsham would never be the same again. As orphans, nowhere in the world would.

Hey, Min… listen to this, Theodore said, hoping to brighten her mood. If the sea dried up, what would Neptune say?

I don't know. What would he say?

"I haven't got a notion," her brother answered with a grin.

Minnie rolled her eyes and moved ahead. That doesn't even make sense. No hint of a smile appeared, and her dimples remained hidden. Clearly, she was in no mood for jokes, even one of his best!

Another hour of drudgery slipped by, scrambling down gravel banks littered with razor-sharp rock shards and around stone towers so fractured, a light gust of wind would likely send them tumbling down the mountainside. It wasn't long before the muscles in their necks and legs burned from the effort to stay upright. Neither could stop to rest, though. Not for a second. The fear of Nylos sparking back to life at any moment kept them moving.

Take care here, Princess, Olenious called back to Minnie. Obligingly, he helped her across a narrow channel carved into the rock, where a crystal-clear stream gushed noisily thirty feet below.

Minnie encouraged her brother, too. This one here, Theo, she said, pointing out one sturdy hand hold and dependable tree root after the next. Step down here… carefully.

Their progress became painfully slow. It had to be. One slip here would see them hurtle half a mile down into oblivion. Random gusts swept across the mountainside, pulling at their cloaks and jostling them back and forth. Every blast seemed more eager than the last to drive the children to their doom.

Where are they? Theodore muttered.

As the sun rose higher to burn away the early morning mist, his concern for Neup and Zilic increased. They had yet to reach even a third of the way down to the valley floor, and still the pair had not returned.

For the fourth time in that hour, Theodore scanned the mountainside above. Where are you, Zilic?

Chapter 3 • A perilous descent

A slender goat track wound its way between thorn bushes and dry, tangled scrub, weaving around boulders casting cool, black shadows and waist high ferns still heavy with dew drops. Fermenting berries spread over the hard-packed earth filled the air with a sour tang.

The journey became a little easier here, not nearly as steep or precarious as up above. For a short time at least, the goat track made a most welcome change. Even so, the children's concentration remained constant.

I still don't understand, Theodore said to Olenious. He held up an arm to shield his eyes from the glare of the midmorning sun. Legion didn't mention Nylos. Or the Keeper… or a labyrinth! Why didn't he tell me the words to free the Zeon Stone from the Last Sanctum?

I do not believe the Guardian intended to mislead you. Olenious shook his head. Remember, Master Reed, the bond the two of you shared within the plateau was severed. Legion could not impart his knowledge fully… before he fell.

Legion had fallen. Theodore remembered the moment all too clearly. I suppose so. Each day since the horrific event, his dreams were plagued by the episode, and his loathing for the beast, Rakista, heightened. Every shred of wisdom the Guardian possessed regarding the Dagger of Shard and the location of the remaining two Zeon Stones had melted away. How do we bring peace to the realm now? he thought, shivering, as the frightful scene replayed over in his mind once again. How will we ever get home?

Eventually, the track emerged from the bushes, squarely at the edge of a rugged, curving cliff—sixty feet straight down. A sloping grass meadow lay across the gap, dotted with wildflowers in blues and reds and pastel pinks; a rare patch of tranquillity amidst this harshest of landscapes.

The only way to reach the meadow, however, involved a narrow, perilous ledge. Simple enough for a goat to scramble around—perhaps even a Borini—but this was an obstacle too far for the children. They could go no further. Minnie gazed longingly at the meadow and the plump yellow bees darting from one flower to the next. A tantalising scent of nectar carried on the breeze to compound her disappointment fully.

Where do we go now? Theodore asked. His heart thumped as he looked out tentatively.

Rest here, said Olenious. He leant his staff against a bush and removed his cloak. Allow me to scout down below. If there is an obvious route to be found, I shall discover it.

Theodore watched on anxiously.

The Borini used the tips of his fingers and the points of two black boots to descend effortlessly, scaling the rock face as easily as a woodlouse might climb down a plant pot.

While her brother paced back and forth, Minnie rested. She laid back in the heather, twiddled the rainbow bracelet at her wrist. In no time at all, her eyes grew heavy, lulled by the wind whistling against the rocks. The warmth of the sun felt wonderful.

Olenious returned within the hour, red faced and blowing.

What did you find? Minnie asked, helping him up. Is there a way down?

It took a moment for the Borini to catch his breath. The ground levels out… a little further down. From there… it should be an easier trek… to the valley floor.

Minnie seemed far from keen on the idea; her brother even less so. Eventually, however, they agreed. The siblings showed little of the speed or grace displayed by Olenious on their own descent. They made their way down steadily, trusting their lives to the strength of their grip and the sturdiness of the rock, testing every foothold twice. A ledge part way down proved strong enough to bear their combined weight and momentarily settle their frayed nerves.

A pink glow gradually returned to Theodore's face. That was quite easy, actually. His words fooled no one.

Come, my friends. Olenious vanished under a mossy stone outcrop and into a dark, slanting tunnel. In here, his voice echoed.

The temperature took a noticeable dip. Minnie and Theodore pulled their cloaks tight and followed, ducking beneath drapes of hanging ivy spotted with pasty orange spores, on and on through pools of sludge and stagnant water that reached up past their ankles. Both wrinkled their noses at the foul smell they discovered there.

All three emerged back into the light to stand at the lip of another sizeable drop. The children paused for a moment, drinking in the magnificent view to the south. Acres of woodland lay far below in a hundred shades of green and gold, oranges, reds and browns. Ribbons of silvery-blue water snaked between the trees, and around humped hills and flat-topped peaks to converge with a slow-moving river etched into the valley floor.

Olenious pressed on, heading under a craggy stone arch shaped like a candle flame. Take care, he called back. Keep close to the wall. Here, a steep path looped around and down the rim of a cavernous shaft steeped in long, dark shadows. Rushing water echoed up from an unseen cave river far below. Theodore and Minnie came behind, trekking down the mountainside, overcoming one death-dealing predicament after the next. Eden would swoop down occasionally to offer Minnie encouragement—to the girl's imagination, at least.

It was late afternoon by the time the ground levelled out fully, not quite to the valley floor as the siblings had hoped, but certainly closer than at any point that day. The companions clambered down a bank of loose, dusty stones and on to a sizeable flat ridge overlooking the valley.

Thank goodness for that, said Theodore, relieved to have stable rock beneath his boots. He placed his bow and backpack down to look all around. A peaceful lake edged with grass and shingle stretching along the ridge for a quarter mile to the right, overlooked all the way by a curving chalk cliff. Pine and cedar trees grew thick across the water and below the cliffs, filling the air with a fresh, natural scent.

Can we sit… just for a minute? Minnie pleaded. Without waiting for a response, she slumped down to a patch of spongy grass. My legs feel like they're about to fall off!

Olenious nodded. He craned his neck to look back up the mountainside. A short break then. You have both earned it… though we must not linger for long. Night-time shall come soon.

The children needed no reminder of what the darkness may bring with it. There had been no sight nor sound of Nylos that day. Nevertheless, within a few scant hours, the notion that sunlight truly immobilised the Titan would be put to the test. Either the night would pass in peace, or death would come for them all in the form of stone and fire.

Theodore slouched beside his sister, and his belly rumbled. As if in reply, Minnie's offered a plea of its own. After an entire day without food—with little more than stream water to sustain them—an acute hunger came over them both.

This should nourish you for a time. Olenious produced a strip of dried salt-beef from his belt pouch, tore it in two, and offered up the snack, small and unappetising as it looked.

All our supplies were back up in the ravine, said Theodore, trying his best to not to grimace at the taste. What will we do for food?

"The land shall provide for