A Darker Shade of Sorcery - - (leveled readers .txt) 📗

peace.”

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The Shifter pack Josh had joined told him about the college. He’d learned that being a weretiger didn’t mean he couldn’t continue his career, as long as he hid what he was. Many of the Mooonlight races had gone on to be actors or lawyers.

Josh was going to be a marine biologist.

“Like Josh said, I’ll be fine,” Ryan assured them.

“Right,” Josh stood up and grabbed another can. “I’m gonna go change my shirt, then we’ll go.”

The others nodded as he headed upstairs. He sighed heavily as he entered his room, picking up more books to put under Ryan’s bed. He’d broken it again by sitting down too hard. They’d been stopping it from collapsing by using college textbooks.

He pulled off his t-shirt and picked up the shirt he’d ironed earlier. Just as he was buttoning it up, the thunderous crash of broken glass exploded downstairs.

Josh swore under his breath. What the hell have you done this time Ry?

He was about to storm downstairs and see how Ryan had managed to break their window, when he heard roars of fury, cries of fear and high laughter that made him go cold.

Josh frantically yanked open his bedroom door and raced down the stairs. He’d only taken a few steps however, when someone abruptly appeared before him, as if out of thin air.

He caught only a glimpse of a teenager with long hair and dressed in black armour, before the boy’s boot connected with Josh’s chest and sent him sprawling back into his room.

“Hi,” the teen said casually, his face expressionless as he pulled a curved dagger from his belt.

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Josh’s shock and confusion at what was happening overwhelmed him. He scuttled to his feet as the armour-clad boy advanced. He looked possibly sixteen, with a pasty face swarmed with acne and the beginnings of facial hair. His eyes however were a dull black, lifeless.

“What are you doing,” Josh growled, “get away from me, man.”

“Have to kill you, sorry,” the teen mumbled. He stepped into the bedroom and held his knife high.

Josh could sense his body begin to morph as the haze of battle fell over him. He could almost feel his blood heat up and skin itched unbearably.

“Get back,” Josh said again, his voice mutated to a lower pitch as his teeth elongated. “Or I won’t be able to stop myself from killing you.”

The boy shrugged, “I said sorry.” He lunged at Josh, jabbing the dagger at his stomach.

Josh turned sharply, letting loose a bestial roar as the transformation took over.

In seconds his hands turned to paws with wicked claws and rust-coloured fur sprouted over his skin. His nose widened and his jaw expanded as his human features twisted into beast.

The teenager slashed at his head this time, but Josh batted the dagger away with one paw, whilst swiping with the other. His claws scraped across the boy’s face, ripping a chunk out of his cheek and a scrap of lip too.

The boy stumbled back, screeching in agony as the gaping hole in his face squirted blood.

Josh was more beast than man now. He pounced on the teen, savaging his neck, ripping into flesh, cartilage and artery. The boy choked for a few seconds into the mauling, before falling silent, forever.

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He stumbled back to his feet, his muzzle stained scarlet. Josh looked at the ruin of a teenager below him and felt nausea hit him like tsunami. He’d done this. He’d ripped a guy to death. Josh had attacked him yes, but the guy was obviously mad, and now Josh had slaughtered him like a pig.

Regret and guilt assaulted him like physical blows, but Josh was jolted out of his imminent panic attack by the battle cries still erupting downstairs.

The boy hadn’t come alone?

He tore from his room and leaped down the stairs, only to enter a scene of chaos and sheer horror.

He saw Ryan first. He’d half mutated into his werepanther form, but the multiple stab wounds had rendered him crawling sluggishly on the floor, swimming in his own blood.

Next he saw the attackers, seven teenagers, dressed in the same black armour as the boy he’d murdered.

It took Josh seeing Ed suspended in the air and bound by a rope of blue magical energy before it hit him. Dark-Venators!

Silas had told Josh about them, alongside demons they were the Venators biggest enemy. They named themselves Rakarn, the demonic word for children.

It was mayhem. He couldn’t believe what he saw above him. Two Rakarn boys skipped in a circle around Ed. They looked like twins, identical, apart from one had spiky blue hair and the other purple. The sadists laughed as they threw handfuls of fire at Ed’s legs.

The lone female Dark-Venator must’ve been the one whose laughter had chilled him to the bone when he heard it from upstairs. She held a whip of flickering

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flames in her hands, her tangled hair a darker shade of red then the flames. She stood on their sofa, her poisonous green eyes focused directly on him.

At least Josh thought she was the only female, she and the twins were the only unmasked Dark-Venators. The other Rakarn wore helms the same ebony as their armour, each helm had two curled horns and the eyehole glass was an ethereal blue.

Josh was about to spring into action when he noticed Silas next to the girl. He sat on the sofa, where he’d been before Josh went upstairs. Silas’s eyes were open, yet he slouched on the sofa’s arm, a knife poking out of his temple.

The girl gasped theatrically at Josh’s reaction, clapping a hand over her mouth.

“Oh no, don’t you like it? It’s my latest art piece. I’m thinking of putting it in a museum.”

She threw back her head and cackled. “C’mon tiger, ravage me!”

A roar of rage and terror erupted out of him as he dashed across the room to rip her to pieces. He was inches away from where he could bite down into her skull, when a giant form smashed into him. He crashed to the floor with a thump, his skeleton jarring.

“Give the naughty boy a slap,” he heard the girl demand.

Before he could rise to his feet a huge fist cracked against his jaw, making his vision flash black and his hearing muffle. As his hearing returned, he heard the twin Rakarn boys singing in turns as they continued to skip:

“Round and round we go, burning the vampy vamp.”

“Ooh, look at that skin sizzle.”

“Eek, look at the flesh bubble.”

“Oh vampy vamp, you sure are in trouble.”

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Mad, they’re all mad!

“Leave him alone,” Josh cried out. He noticed his face had returned to normal, and tears of anger and despair were rolling down it.

“Ah, the vampire has a friend,” one of the twins beamed.

“I wish we had more friends,” the other remarked thoughtfully.

“Rath, Ragul,” the girl addressed the twin boys, “shut the hell up, or I’ll put you in the cage again.”

“No, no, we’ll be good.” Both Rath and Ragul simpered, backing away.

Josh staggered to his feet, staring about wildly. He was surrounded on all sides by a circle of the Dark-Venators.

Directly behind him loomed a monster of a man, the one who’d collided with him earlier. Even clad head to toe in the black Rakarn armour, Josh could tell the big man was deformed, the armour stretched around unnatural bulges of muscle.

With his horned helm, the giant resembled a Minotaur.

“Attend to the panther,” The red-haired girl commanded. She stepped off the sofa and strutted towards Josh, gesturing with her hand.

Josh had been about to attack, but an invisible force wrapped around his body, forcing him to kneel before her.

“Watch this, pet.”

He was paralysed by her sorcery, but the girl gently tilted his chin. Josh saw Ryan try to crawl away, completely human now. His arms and chest were riddled with gaping holes however, and the blood continued to leak out.

Josh screamed Ryan’s name over and over again. Right up until the giant Dark-Venator bent over Ryan, grabbed his head in both hands and snapped his neck.

The girl giggled. “Aww, were you two close?”

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Josh struggled desperately to break free of her spell, but it was no good, he could only move his eyes and mouth.

He called out to Ed repeatedly. But Ed still hung in the air, his jeans on fire as he screamed into the gag stuffed in his mouth.

“Hey baby.” The girl crouched down close, licking her lips seductively. “You can call me Selina.”

“You- you killed him,” he choked, unable to stop staring at Silas’s body.

“Obviously,” Selina purred. “All Venators deserve to die. Do you know they exiled me from their oh-so-great Veneseron when I was a child? They dulled my magic and took my memories before chucking me back to Earth like a piece of trash. Do they sound like the good guys to you? But Velkarath found me, saved me. They can save you too little tiger.”

Selina crouched down beside him, delicately draping a hand against his face.

“We are the children of Velkarath,” she whispered into his ear. “The Masters of monsters, and the instruments of agony. Will you join us, or will you die?”

Sequels Available Now

Moonlight War- Act I

The Realmers Series- Book 2

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01HLGKL9U

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https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01HLGKL9U

Moonlight War- Act II

The Realmers Series- Book 3

https://www.amazon.com/Moonlight-War-Act-Realmers-Book-ebook/dp/

B01MUH7NED

Document Outline A Darker Shade of Sorcery The Realmers- Book One Padrake grimaced. “I know it sounds ludicrous, but…” Chapter 5- Of Venators and Veneseron Chapter 6- An Orc, A Dwarf and an Australian walk into a Bar Chapter 7- Sorcery Unfurling TODAY’S TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR EVAN UMBRA BREAKFAST SESSION ONE: ILLUSION SESSION TWO: ANATOMY SESSION THREE: EARTH ELEMENT LUNCH SESSION FOUR: AIR ELEMENT SESSION FIVE: HEALING SESSION SIX: WEAPONRY AFTER YOUR DAY’S TRAINING FEEL FREE TO DO AS YOU WISH BUT DO NOT! 1. ENTER VENESERON CITY BEFORE FIRST NOTIFYING AN INSTRUCTOR 2. PERFORM PAINFUL MAGIC OR VIOLENCE ON ANOTHER VENATOR 3. PLAY JEWELBALL, TWINSPHERE, ARENA-BATTLE OR ANY OTHER DANGEROUS GAME IN A CONFINED SPACE IT PROBABLY WON’T END WELL TODAY’S TRAINING SCHEDULE FOR EVAN UMBRA “I was fine until…” Chapter 8- Girls and Gargoyles She screamed again and again… … She burst awake still screaming. Chapter 9- There's A Demon In My Bedroom “I dunno’ the Dread Lords, or maybe those Dark-Venators…” Chapter 11- Sword Taste Chapter 12- Kingdom Enchanted “No dad, they’re not-” Chapter 13- Brawling with Goblins Chapter 14- A Traitor's Grasp Chapter 15- Paranoia Evan’s fingers scrabbled at his throat on instinct, as if he could rip the choke spell away with his hands. Abruptly the silence was shattered by a chorus of laughter. The hooded figure froze before sprinting down the corridor and out of sight. As his attacker disappeared, the invisible vice at his throat snapped and Evan