A Voyage of Founders Read online

  A Shade of Vampire 60: A Voyage of Founders

  Bella Forrest

  Contents

  Also by Bella Forrest

  Problems reading?

  New Generation List

  Family tree

  1. Sofia

  2. Derek

  3. Elonora

  4. Kailani

  5. Harper

  6. Derek

  7. Sofia

  8. Rose

  9. Elonora

  10. Derek

  11. Sofia

  12. Derek

  13. Sofia

  14. Rose

  15. Sofia

  16. Derek

  17. Sofia

  18. Elonora

  19. Kailani

  20. Rose

  21. Vesta

  22. Rose

  23. Rose

  24. Ben

  25. Elonora

  26. Vesta

  27. Kailani

  28. Elonora

  29. Dmitri

  30. Elonora

  31. Rose

  32. Elonora

  33. Kailani

  34. Elonora

  35. Harper

  36. Derek

  Bonus “Sneak Peek”

  Read more by Bella Forrest

  Also by Bella Forrest

  THE CHILD THIEF

  (Brand new action-adventure/romance series!)

  The Child Thief (Book 1)

  HOTBLOODS

  Hotbloods (Book 1)

  Coldbloods (Book 2)

  Renegades (Book 3)

  Venturers (Book 4)

  Traitors (Book 5)

  Allies (Book 6)

  Invaders (Book 7)

  THE GIRL WHO DARED TO THINK

  (Completed series)

  The Girl Who Dared to Think (Book 1)

  The Girl Who Dared to Stand (Book 2)

  The Girl Who Dared to Descend (Book 3)

  The Girl Who Dared to Rise (Book 4)

  The Girl Who Dared to Lead (Book 5)

  The Girl Who Dared to Endure (Book 6)

  The Girl Who Dared to Fight (Book 7)

  THE GENDER GAME

  (Completed series)

  The Gender Game (Book 1)

  The Gender Secret (Book 2)

  The Gender Lie (Book 3)

  The Gender War (Book 4)

  The Gender Fall (Book 5)

  The Gender Plan (Book 6)

  The Gender End (Book 7)

  A SHADE OF VAMPIRE SERIES

  Season 1: Derek & Sofia’s story

  A Shade of Vampire (Book 1)

  A Shade of Blood (Book 2)

  A Castle of Sand (Book 3)

  A Shadow of Light (Book 4)

  A Blaze of Sun (Book 5)

  A Gate of Night (Book 6)

  A Break of Day (Book 7)

  Season 2: Rose & Caleb’s story

  A Shade of Novak (Book 8)

  A Bond of Blood (Book 9)

  A Spell of Time (Book 10)

  A Chase of Prey (Book 11)

  A Shade of Doubt (Book 12)

  A Turn of Tides (Book 13)

  A Dawn of Strength (Book 14)

  A Fall of Secrets (Book 15)

  An End of Night (Book 16)

  Season 3: The Shade continues with a new hero…

  A Wind of Change (Book 17)

  A Trail of Echoes (Book 18)

  A Soldier of Shadows (Book 19)

  A Hero of Realms (Book 20)

  A Vial of Life (Book 21)

  A Fork of Paths (Book 22)

  A Flight of Souls (Book 23)

  A Bridge of Stars (Book 24)

  Season 4: A Clan of Novaks

  A Clan of Novaks (Book 25)

  A World of New (Book 26)

  A Web of Lies (Book 27)

  A Touch of Truth (Book 28)

  An Hour of Need (Book 29)

  A Game of Risk (Book 30)

  A Twist of Fates (Book 31)

  A Day of Glory (Book 32)

  Season 5: A Dawn of Guardians

  A Dawn of Guardians (Book 33)

  A Sword of Chance (Book 34)

  A Race of Trials (Book 35)

  A King of Shadow (Book 36)

  An Empire of Stones (Book 37)

  A Power of Old (Book 38)

  A Rip of Realms (Book 39)

  A Throne of Fire (Book 40)

  A Tide of War (Book 41)

  Season 6: A Gift of Three

  A Gift of Three (Book 42)

  A House of Mysteries (Book 43)

  A Tangle of Hearts (Book 44)

  A Meet of Tribes (Book 45)

  A Ride of Peril (Book 46)

  A Passage of Threats (Book 47)

  A Tip of Balance (Book 48)

  A Shield of Glass (Book 49)

  A Clash of Storms (Book 50)

  Season 7: A Call of Vampires

  A Call of Vampires (Book 51)

  A Valley of Darkness (Book 52)

  A Hunt of Fiends (Book 53)

  A Den of Tricks (Book 54)

  A City of Lies (Book 55)

  A League of Exiles (Book 56)

  A Charge of Allies (Book 57)

  A Snare of Vengeance (Book 58)

  A Battle of Souls (Book 59)

  Season 8: A Voyage of Founders

  A Voyage of Founders (Book 60)

  A SHADE OF DRAGON TRILOGY

  A Shade of Dragon 1

  A Shade of Dragon 2

  A Shade of Dragon 3

  A SHADE OF KIEV TRILOGY

  A Shade of Kiev 1

  A Shade of Kiev 2

  A Shade of Kiev 3

  THE SECRET OF SPELLSHADOW MANOR

  (Completed series)

  The Secret of Spellshadow Manor (Book 1)

  The Breaker (Book 2)

  The Chain (Book 3)

  The Keep (Book 4)

  The Test (Book 5)

  The Spell (Book 6)

  BEAUTIFUL MONSTER DUOLOGY

  Beautiful Monster 1

  Beautiful Monster 2

  DETECTIVE ERIN BOND (Adult thriller/mystery)

  Lights, Camera, GONE

  Write, Edit, KILL

  For an updated list of Bella’s books, please visit her website: www.bellaforrest.net

  Join Bella’s VIP email list and she’ll send you an email reminder as soon as her next book is out. Tap here to sign up: www.forrestbooks.com

  Copyright © 2018 by Bella Forrest

  Cover design inspired by Sarah Hansen, Okay Creations LLC

  All rights reserved.

  No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

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  New Generation List

  Dmitri (son of Victoria and Bastien – half human and half werewolf)

  Elonora “Lenny” (daughter of Ash and Ruby – vampire-sentry)

  Varga (son of Ash and Ruby – vampire-sentry)

  Kailani “Kale” (daughter of Brock and Arwen / granddaughter of Corrine and Ibrahim – witch)

  Hunter (Sofia’s adoptive brother / adopted son of Aiden and Kailyn – werewolf)

  Vesta (daughter of Idris and Rayna – water fae)

  Family tree

  If you’d like to check out the Novaks’ family tree, visit: www.forrestbooks.com/tree

  Sofia

  Our lives were nev
er easy, but they were never boring, either.

  Every period of calm and prosperity was eventually followed by some kind of challenge, an unexpected crisis or a frantic quest to get our loved ones back home. I guess, in a way, getting into trouble was part of the Novaks’ way of life.

  Six months had passed since our young ones had managed to liberate Neraka, a beautiful planet far away in the In-Between, a natural gem that orbited three suns and carried three moons of its own. It was home to a variety of fascinating creatures whose lives had been turned upside down by the arrival of the Exiled Maras. The Imen, the Manticores, the Dhaxanians, and the Adlets had already been dealing with a local threat—the daemons—when the Exiled Maras landed and made everything worse.

  And the Maras had only gotten there by chance. The interplanetary travel spell had not had a specific destination. It was supposed to be their opportunity to start anew and be better creatures. Instead, they did the exact opposite and turned everything from bad to worse.

  By the time they’d reached out to us under false pretenses, they’d already decimated the Imen population and had formed a horrible alliance with the daemons. They’d captured a Druid delegation and imprisoned their swamp witch—Lumi, now the last of her kind. They’d used her spells to fortify their position in the Nerakian food chain and to cause misery to those who’d opposed them.

  Fortunately, they didn’t count on us sending a dragon to join the recon mission. In their greedy, bloodthirsty minds, they’d thought they could stage an elaborate play to fool us and draw more supernaturals to Neraka, so they could capture and force them into breeding camps solely for the purpose of replenishing their food source. They’d become addicted to consuming souls on top of their appetite for blood, and that had made everything worse.

  But our kids and allies were strong and determined, driven to restore the freedom of the oppressed Nerakians. We were all so proud of them—Harper, Caia, Blaze, Avril, Scarlett, Patrik, Heron, Jax, and Hansa had turned that place around. They befriended the local rebels and worked to systematically dismantle both the daemon kingdom and the Mara city. The bonds they made were unbreakable. The relationships they built would last a lifetime and beyond.

  Most importantly, they succeeded. Our intervention toward the end was pretty much minimal. Harper had already killed the daemon king. Hansa, Jax, and the others had defeated the Mara Lords. By the time we managed to get to Neraka, all we had to do was get the innocents out and let the dragons loose.

  Time flowed smoothly after that. We buried the dead, we established a Nerakian GASP base, and we helped the planet resume its progressive ways. When they weren’t shackled or mind-bent, the Imen were extraordinarily cultured and artistic people. We had a lot to learn from them, in fact. Perhaps one of the biggest discoveries we made there was the existence of Hermessi—supernatural entities made of pure energy that manifested as the four natural elements. Fire, water, air, and earth weren’t just naturally occurring phenomena. They were the manifestation of elemental spirits—the same who fueled the fae, in fact. Harper had only met one of them, though; Ramin had concealed himself in the form of an Ekar bird. In exchange for an unspecified favor, the Hermessi helped Harper against Shaytan, the daemon king. Afterward, Ramin was nowhere to be found.

  But we knew about them. We were aware of their existence. The Imen and the other Nerakians believed in them. The more faith people had in the Hermessi, the more powerful they would become. Derek and I agreed that it was only a matter of time before the elements would begin to manifest, to present themselves to those who acknowledged their existence.

  After numerous back-and-forths with the Nerakians, Jax agreed to surrender the sentenced Exiled Maras back to the newly formed daemon-Iman alliance. According to Zane, the young daemon king, and Wyrran, the elected leader of the Imen, it was only fitting that those who’d wanted to conquer Neraka were forced to spend the rest of their prison terms in the underground daemon penitentiaries. Velnias, former High Warden of Draconis and now Zane’s right-hand man, had been put in charge of the prisons. He, too, agreed that the Exiled Maras deserved to experience loneliness, emptiness, and desolation. He considered it a way to give those creatures a taste of their own medicine.

  However, with GASP present on Neraka, we made sure that the prisons themselves followed a humane protocol. Fiona and Wyrran shared a joint leadership position in Neraka’s GASP, which was befitting of the new alliance, too. After all, Fiona was going to one day become the queen of daemons via her marriage to Zane, and Wyrran represented the Imen, the people most oppressed by the Exiled Maras. Nevis, prince of Dhaxanians, continued to lead his people and work with the local GASP chapter, while scoping out potential missions outside Neraka to satisfy his urge to travel. Neha, the Manticore queen, and Hundurr, Adlet pack leader, had also joined the local GASP leadership in executive and tactical roles.

  Zane had become a king equally respected and feared. The daemons obeyed him, almost unequivocally. His firm rule made sure that no one dared cross him. His harsh punishments secured the new alliances and protected the Nerakians as a whole. The daemons who’d given in to their soul addiction were currently forced into rehabilitation programs. Those who recidivated, however, were jailed for life. There was zero tolerance for soul-eaters, and it was the only way in which peace could be pursued and preserved in the long run. Those who refused to get with the program and insisted on eating souls paid a heavy price.

  Despite the rough reforms, we were all looking at a long period of peace ahead.

  Eritopia had also fully regained its balance, with the Daughters and Druids working closely together to rebuild their societies on all twenty planets. Persea’s Grand Temple was flourishing and bringing forth new and highly skilled Druids. The Maras were exceptionally ruled by Jax. And our Eritopian GASP bases were a welcome addition to their development.

  The Shade was prospering. Our family tree was growing.

  The younger generations were adjusting to their new roles in GASP, excelling at everything they did. There were new couples coming together. The dynamic had shifted, and inclusiveness had become a crucial component of Shadian culture. We were an organic society of hybrids, as love transcended species and entire galaxies, in the end.

  We grew bigger and stronger as a whole each day, and that filled my heart with joy and warmth. It gave me hope for even better days ahead. We could always do better, after all.

  For now, however, we were all on edge, nervously huddled in a waiting room inside the Green Clinic—a hospital operated by mostly Druids, and annexed to Luceria, Calliope’s leadership residence. Aida had gone into labor.

  Derek and I kept to one of the corners, while the rest of our ever-growing clan occupied the seats. Field was in the delivery room with Aida, holding her hand every step of the way. Jovi was with us, nervously pacing the room back and forth, over and over, unable to take his eyes off the door to Aida’s room. River watched him quietly. She was worried and excited at the same time. We all were, for that matter. Pregnancies were usually a cause for joy, but, until labor was over, there were always risks to consider. It was even more dangerous where hybrids were concerned.

  There were rarely problems, and that had mostly been due to having Corrine and the other White Witches on board. Their magic and skills had kept all our young mothers safe throughout their pregnancies and during labor.

  “Honey, you’re going to dig a ditch into the floor,” River said softly.

  Jovi sighed but kept moving. “Sorry, Aunt River. I just can’t sit still,” he replied. Anjani didn’t take her eyes off him, endeared by his brotherly concern.

  “Relax, dude,” Dmitri chimed in, then smiled broadly. “Our sister’s a warrior. I doubt delivering a baby will do much to hold her back.”

  “The pregnancy increased her appetite to dangerous levels,” Phoenix mumbled.

  Serena, Draven, Vita, and Bijarki were also present, as were Harper, and Caspian. Viola was inside the birthing room, with the rest of the Dau
ghters, as well as Field, Corrine, Arwen, and Lumi—Aida had the best care anyone could ever ask for.

  “Yeah, I’m glad that part’s over.” Jovi chuckled softly.

  “It’ll be okay, Son,” Bastien said. “The Blackhall line is extra sturdy, given their wolf genes.”

  “You’ve got that right,” Victoria replied.

  The whole Novak gang was crammed inside the waiting room: Grace and Lawrence, Hazel and Tejus, Yelena and Benedict, Vivienne and Xavier. Even Marion and Lucas had made their way to Calliope for this special moment. We’d kept the others away and in charge of key GASP roles in our absence; fortunately, there were enough of us to go around for pretty much anything.

  There are obvious advantages to having a big family.

  The other Hawk brothers were whispering and chuckling among themselves. It was their boyish way of dealing with such an important milestone. After all, they were minutes away from becoming uncles.

  “Jovi, have they picked out a name yet?” Sky asked, stifling a grin.

  Jovi stopped, then looked at him. He narrowed his eyes. “Yes, they have. And no, they’re not naming my nephew Mountain or Spring or whatever else you’ve got cooked up in your heads.”

  Sky chuckled, then nudged Dmitri, who was sitting next to him. “Says the guy named Jovi. I mean, what kind of a name is that?”

  “It’s the name we picked out for our son,” Bastien interjected, wiping the grin off Sky’s face, then laughing lightly. Bastien had a way of intimidating the Hawk brothers, almost effortlessly.

  “And he wears it with great pride,” Anjani replied, smiling at Jovi, who softened like a blob of jelly whenever she looked at him.