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Memory
War
The
Memory Wars Trilogy
Book
3
by Paul
Anthony Shortt
Genre: Urban
Fantasy
Publisher: WiDo
Publishing LLC
Date of
Publication: September 2nd, 2014
Number of pages:
330
Word Count:
104,500
Cover Artist: Steven
Novak
Book
Description:
War is coming to
New York. Nathan Shepherd's growing band of followers is dedicated to
protecting the city, but they now face their greatest threat.
Athamar returns,
plunging the city into chaos. Uniting the forces of darkness against Nathan and
his allies, Athamar strives to discover a secret hidden for thousands of years.
A secret lost to Nathan's memories. Something so dangerous, even the gods
themselves fear it.
Nathan and Elena
were once the greatest of heroes, champions against evil. Now, haunted by
Nathan's past-life betrayal, they must work together and brave the pain of
long-buried lifetimes. Somewhere, locked within their former incarnations, lies
the key to stopping Athamar, an enemy who has hunted them from one incarnation
to the next.
As the city
burns and innocents suffer, as heroes fall and hope dies, Nathan and Elena face
their final battle, a battle where legends will be reborn.
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Excerpt from Memory War
Tuxedos
were the worst. At least in the Roman Empire, the Middle Ages, even during the
Renaissance, clothing, men’s especially, was designed to allow enough freedom
of movement to fight or defend oneself. The 21st century had long seen the end
of that. Nathan Shepherd’s feet blistered in polished shoes. He was sure they
were too small, despite what the man in the rental store had said, and found
himself longing for a practical form of battle dress which would also go with
black tie events.
He
scanned the ballroom as he descended the marble steps. The scent of expensive
perfume drifted across the air, accompanied by the gentle sway of a string quartet
on the stage. Tugging at his collar, Nathan walked to the buffet table and
plucked a glass of champagne.
“Status?”
Cynthia Keller’s voice crackled in his earpiece.
“Champagne’s
not bad,” he said, softly. “Not sure about the caviar though.”
“You’re
supposed to be watching the mayor.”
“I’m
getting into character.”
“Well
listen, 007, we’ve got four people who just went in through the kitchen door
and one of them looks a lot like Lucius.”
Lucius
was a vampire, one of the top-ranking enforcers for the Council of Chains. He’d
been seen on the street a lot since Dorian went missing last year.
“Were
they armed?” Nathan asked, sipping the champagne.
“Couldn’t
see,” Cynthia replied. “Nothing big, at least. No heavy bags or boxes that
could conceal large amounts of weaponry.”
“How
are they going to do this?”
“Poison?”
Cynthia said. “That’s how they got the chief of police.”
“Difficult,”
Nathan said. So many people were taking hors d’oeuvres and drinks from tables
and passing servers that it would be impossible to predict what the mayor would
take. “Unless they poison something other than the food,” Nathan said. He
frowned. It was something to watch for.
“What
else is there?” Cynthia asked. “This is too big for a bomb or a shooter.”
“Keep
me posted on anything suspicious entering or leaving the building,” Nathan
said, sipping his drink and wandering along the dance floor. The crowd on the
dance floor parted and he saw the mayor speaking to a group seated at a table.
“I
have him,” Nathan said. “Tommy, what’s your status?” This was Tommy’s first
time in the field, and he was doing everything he could not to seem nervous.
“Uh,
restroom,” his voice came back through Nathan’s earpiece.
“You’re
supposed to be by the stage.”
“Sorry
boss,” Tommy said. “Must have been the crab meat crackers.”
“I’ve
got Green,” Nathan said. “I need your eyes out here.”
“I’ll
do my…” The sound of Tommy’s voice was replaced by retching and the splash of
liquid hitting liquid. Nathan’s stomach turned a little.
“Just
give me a minute,” Tommy said, coughing.
Movement
caught Nathan’s eye. Four men moving through the crowd, shoulders set back and
arms loose. They were ready to pounce. “I don’t have a minute.” Where was
Lucius?
One
of them nodded across the ballroom. Nathan turned to follow the gaze and
spotted Lucius emerging from a staff door. Nathan set his glass down and
started across the dance floor.
Then
he saw her, flowing across the floor in a backless scarlet dress, split along
the sides to reveal her sculpted calves and thighs. Three ebony hairpins held
her long black hair in a coiled bun, leaving only a few tantalising locks
framing her face. She turned and narrowed her eyes. He wondered how many other
people would have been able to spot the marks on her arms and back where she’d
used make-up to cover her scars. Marks earned in battle. Nathan’s gaze drifted
of its own accord, up each curve from her hips to her neck, settling for a
moment on her blood red lips and wide, practiced smile. Her sea green eyes
fixed him and she advanced, sweeping toward him and locking her arms around his
shoulders.
“Elena,”
he said. “What are you doing here?”
“Making
sure you get out alive,” she said. Her smile never faltered. She pulled Nathan
into the crowd as the musicians started up a new piece.
“I
don’t have time to dance.” He tried to pull away, but Elena held him firm.
Nathan placed his hands on her hips and pushed, but she pressed herself against
him. He shivered and inhaled her perfume.
“You
have four behind you,” she said, “and another four coming from the staff
entrance.”
“I
know,” he said, leading her across the floor in time to the music. “Lucius is
leading them. It’s a Council hit.” He glanced to the side. “Two more on your
left, dancing.” They moved apart, keeping their steps in perfect rhythm.
Elena
flicked her eyes around. “Three by the stairs. Just you?”
Nathan
shook his head as they closed in together again. “Tommy’s inside. Cynthia and
Cadence are watching from the next building. Sue’s got the truck waiting.”
“Sam?”
“Watching
the bar.”
“You
should have Cadence in here,” she said.
“I
can handle this,” he said.
“You
need help.”
Nathan
smirked and dipped Elena, gazing down at her.
“That’s
the wrong step,” she said.
Nathan
felt the energy in the crowd shift. A forgotten sense most mortals possessed,
but which only those regularly exposed to the supernatural were aware of,
allowed the detection of emotional energy and even the presence of supernatural
creatures and magical effects. The crowd was nervous. Eyes moved to Nathan and
Elena. People backed away. One of the men approaching from behind Elena flashed
a grin, showing a pair of long fangs.
“It’s
time to change the tempo,” Nathan said. “Allegro, perhaps?”
Elena
nodded and reached for one of her hair pins. Nathan pulled her back up and she
threw the pin. It flew straight into the heart of one of the Council agents.
Nathan ignored the scream and delivered a side-kick to the sternum of the
vampire behind Elena.
“Tommy,”
Nathan yelled into his radio. “Where are you?”
Nathan
spotted him pushing his way through the crowd as two more vampires moved in on
him and Elena. They fought back to back. Elena kicked off her shoes and used
another hair pin as a close-range stabbing weapon. Nathan blocked a wild punch
and twisted the vampire’s arm, breaking it at the elbow joint. The vampire
yelled and Nathan spun, hurling him against the buffet table.
A
female vampire leaped onto Nathan’s back. Her hiss closed in on his ear as she
reached for his throat. Nathan reached around to grab her, but another vampire
kicked him in the stomach.
Tommy
tried to push onto the dance floor, but the crowd was too thick and panicked.
“Cadence,”
Nathan said, struggling to breathe as the woman on his back tried to strangle
him. “Now.”
A
window smashed inward as a rolled-up black wrap flew through the air. It landed
close to Nathan and fell open, revealing the hilt of his sword.
“Elena!”
The
woman on Nathan’s back seized and shrieked. Her grip loosened. Nathan spun his
hips and threw her off. One of Elena’s pins stuck out of her back. These
vampires weren’t dying immediately upon wood piercing their hearts. That meant
they were older; more powerful than the average street vampires. They’d need
their heads cut off or their bodies burned to finish them off for good.
Nathan
dove for his sword, snatching it and slashing the next vampire’s leg. He rolled
to his feet and swung down as the vampire’s fingernails grew into long black
claws. Its hands fell away and the vampire shrieked, running from Nathan.
Elena
reached for the roll of weapons and took two small curved axes. Five vampires
surrounded them. Nathan pointed for Tommy to get to the mayor and he nodded,
running to the stage. The vampires pounced.
Nathan
and Elena reacted as one, fighting off their attackers with precision and unity
honed over a hundred lifetimes. Dark blood splattered the dance floor as they
cut down the vampires one by one. With every heartbeat, Nathan felt Elena’s
soul pulsing and his own respond in kind. They breathed in unison, feeling what
the other felt, seeing what the other saw. It was in this, the work of
performing death, that their last true bond remained. Nathan was almost used to
the regret. It urged him on, giving him power, bringing forth memories of
past-life battles to fuel his strength and speed. He reached into those
memories now, plucking one from the chaos and taking his past-self’s adrenaline
to keep his mind focused on the task at hand. There was no room for mistakes
here.
About
the Author
A child at heart
who turned to writing and roleplaying games when there simply weren't enough
action figures to play out the stories he wanted, Paul Anthony Shortt has been
writing all his life.
Growing up
surrounded by music, film and theatre gave him a deep love of all forms of
storytelling, each teaching him something new he could use. When not playing
with the people in his head, he enjoys cooking and regular meet-ups with his
gaming group.
He lives in
Ireland with his wife Jen and their dogs, Pepper and Jasper. Their first child,
Conor William Henry Shortt, was born on July 11th, 2011. He passed away three
days later, but brought love and joy into their lives and those of their
friends.
The following
year, Jen gave birth to twins, Amy and Erica. Their fourth child, Olivia, was
born in January, 2014.
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