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    Beauty in a Land of Sorrow
    Beauty in a Land of Sorrow
    Beauty in a Land of Sorrow
    Ebook138 pages2 hours

    Beauty in a Land of Sorrow

    By R. Janvier del Valle

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    About this ebook

    Beauty in a Land of Sorrow is the fourth installment in the Deaf Swordsman Series. A novella in length, the overall story focuses on the main characters' attempt at finding beauty in the dreariest of fortunes. Join Vohro, Jeskun, and Wend, along with their new Davinian friends, Sunasar and Ebar, on an adventure-filled journey down a road of beauty, love, jealousy, electrifying surprises, and deep humiliation.

    After narrowly escaping Wesper Forest, Jeskun wakes up energized and hopeful only to find himself in the torrential rains of a windy mountain village. Without a moment to gather his thoughts, Jeskun is thrown into a perilous mission involving his teacher and a dubious plot to find a cure for the Blade School of Davi's ailing headmaster.

    Not wanting to make their way across the Sunless Land, the Davinian traveling company dives into an undiscovered region of Esterra, casting their lot into a spiritual darkness threatening to extinguish the fleeting hopes nestled deep within their souls. A surprise ambush catches the Davinians off guard, ultimately forcing the traveling party to surrender to their captors and heightening the intensity of the Davinian's chances for survival.

    Following a failed rescued attempt, the Davinians are yet again thrown into a menacing world of the insane and psychotic when they are selected to undergo a horrible and outlandish test inside a massive aging castle. There, they must make a stand against a ruthless leader known as the King of Sorrow and bring to light a thousand-year-old secret regarding the Tomb of Voices, a horrid hole in the ground used by the king to punish all who are not marked with his infamous Sign of Insanity.

    This installment of the series introduces three new important characters. Elandra (Ela) Elissieh of the Iron Arches, Sunasar the Knower and Ebar the Silent.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherR. Janvier del Valle
    Release dateFeb 6, 2013
    ISBN9781301667062
    Beauty in a Land of Sorrow
    Author

    R. Janvier del Valle

    R. Janvier del Valle holds a Bachelor of Business Administration from Kennesaw State University and a Master of Theological Studies from Spring Hill College. He has worked in the Advertising, Marketing, and Communications industries for over ten years and has taught a number of classes in philosophy and theology to adults as well as children.He resides with his wife and daughter in Georgia. When he isn't writing, he's sleeping. And when he's not sleeping, he's spending time with his family, running, hiking, hitting the gym, watching movies, buying overpriced one-sixth scale action figures, studying and reading philosophy and theology, and most of all, collecting pointy, shiny things that tend to gleam of a certain silver whenever exposed to the moonlit eventide."In necesariis unitas, in dubiis libertas, in omnibus caritas."

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      Book preview

      Beauty in a Land of Sorrow - R. Janvier del Valle

      OTHER BOOKS BY R. JANVIER del VALLE

      SWORD FROM THE SKY SERIES (NOVELS)

      Book One: The Blade School of Daví

      Book II: Onward Unto An Endless Night (2013)

      THE DEAF SWORDSMAN SERIES (NOVELLAS)

      No. 1: Children of a Sunless Land

      No. 2: The Abandoned Asylum of the Good Doctor Fangtasahd

      No. 3: Along the Many Houses of Damnation

      No. 5: Where the Frost Reigns (2013)

      No. 6: The Golden Queen (2013)

      No. 7: The Veil of Vanity (2013)

      No. 8: The Hound of the Moon (2013)

      No. 9: Escape from the Sunless Land (2013)

      SILAS DE SAN MICHEL MYSTERY SERIES (NOVELS)

      To Kill and Kill Again (2013)

      "The man was a marriage of monk and savage, of scholar and assassin…a brute at times, he had a touch of the pagan barbarian…yet was the brightest of philosophers and had the grace of a spirited healer. On a quest to find his missing child, he took to a higher calling, driven by something greater, as if that one mission was just an excuse to truly enact his divine destiny. Restless and sour as the dank, gray air of the moon, he was reliable in only one respect--he was wired since birth to destroy evil--in all manners, in all forms. This was the deaf swordsman, Vohro Vahllenu--the man with nine blades."

      BEAUTY IN A LAND OF SORROW

      "MY HEALING IS NOT OF THIS WORLD," SAID A voice muffled by the fluttering of a strong wind. Jeskun’s eyes trembled underneath his eyelids, struggling to break apart. He heard voices in the distance, and he felt as if he was floating on a cloud of air, soft and heavenly. Soon, he realized the sensation he felt was the rhythm of a horse’s gait, amplified by the continuous undulation of a carriage’s bosom. He felt warmth desperately trying to break into the darkness of his vision, and at last, with a fortified will, the jubahn opened his eyes, barely at first then fully a few seconds later.

      Everything was white light, fuzzy and indistinguishable. But after a moment, he saw the shapes of leaves and the overarching branches of tall trees. A bird sang colorfully with its trumpeted beak, and there was a cry in the air of a predatory hawk flying high in the sky. He turned his head and saw an image of a woman sitting next to him. She met his gaze, and he stared deep into her eyes, her eyes like bright sunflowers in a sky of porcelain lakes.

      Good spirit, he murmured.

      She reached out to him, running her weathered hand across his face. Sleep, young one, she said, closing his eyes. And Jeskun fell back into the blackness of a dream.

      ***

      Weeks passed, and he opened his eyes once more.

      Keep trying, Jubahn, said a man’s voice, deep and comforting.

      Jeskun wrestled with his eyes for a moment but eventually forced them to bloom with the fullness of life.

      We’ve been waiting for you, said the man, now revealed to the young Jubahn. The man had a strong face with high cheek bones and deep sunken eyes. He wore a soft wide-brimmed hat, and on his upper mass, a sturdy, elegant Davinian Ren kept him warm.

      You’re Davinian? said Jeskun.

      Yes, I am, said the man. And so are you.

      Jeskun grinned.

      "I’m Ebar the Silent."

      The Silent? said Jeskun, his curiosity bringing him back to life. Why are you called that?

      Because I like to talk, said Ebar. Charming, isn’t it?

      Jeskun brimmed with a half-hearted smile, but then with a powerful insight, continued, Yet, I sense you don’t speak the truth.

      Ebar’s face stiffened and his eyes narrowed. A great smile spread across his face. Impressive, he said.

      Strong lad, that boy is, said a voice behind Ebar.

      Yes, sure enough, said Ebar. He raised his right arm to Jeskun and showed him a Corcoban symbol that had been branded on him a long time ago. "See this here, Jubahn? It was given to me during my days in the Corcoban dungeons. They called me the silent back in those days because I kept to myself, never uttering a word to anyone. My only friend was a small rat I kept hidden with me. But I didn’t talk to him either."

      But you’re talking now, said Jeskun with a smile.

      Yes, boy, I most certainly am, said Ebar, laughing and extending his hand for Jeskun to grab. Raise yourself up. Jeskun grabbed Ebar’s hand and sat up. He scanned the room, noticing that he was in a modest hut nestled deep inside a mountainous village. He could hear the faint howling of the wind, and the smell of old rain streamed along the strong breeze, molesting the loose strands of his floppy yellow mane.

      Where am I? said Jeskun.

      You’re in the mountain village of Yungue, on the borders of the Bellowing Mountains and slightly northwest of the Kingdom of Bune, said the man sitting behind Ebar.

      Bune? said Jeskun. The School of Daví?

      Yes, Jubahn, said Ebar. "The Davinian school resides in Bune, in the Valley of Ave."

      I was on my way there to return my teacher’s belongings to Mastro Siel.

      That’s no longer necessary, Jubahn, said the man behind Ebar, who now stood up and approached the boy. He was Davinian, but not like any other. His ren was long and illustrious, like an elegant robe. The hilt of his blades were more polished than any other he’d seen before, and on his head, instead of the typical soft hat, the man wore a long hood, nestled securely with a thick golden circlet. "I’m Sunasar, and I too am a friend of your teacher’s."

      Vohro? said Jeskun. He’s alive, right? I saw him with Dahkar, clear as day. Was it a dream?

      It was no dream, Jubahn, said Ebar. He was healed by Elba, just like you.

      Elba?

      Sure enough, said Sunasar.

      Jeskun then came to a frightful realization. Wend! he cried. Jeskun struggled to get up but Ebar steadied him.

      Careful now, said Ebar. You’ve been out for a couple of weeks; you need to gather your strength.

      But Wend? said Jeskun. "Has she healed by now? How is she? Where is she?!"

      Ebar turned to Sunasar. His face dropped and his eyes lowered. You can’t go to Wend, said Ebar, turning to him. She’s not here. She’s--gone to the other side.

      Jeskun’s head lowered, and his soul fell mute as if every living thing around him had suddenly died and disappeared. He lifted his eyes in a moment of complete desperation, sitting silently as he peered into the Davinian’s soul.

      A moment passed in complete silence.

      The silence was broken when a nasty slap made contact with the back of Ebar’s head. Stop messing with the boy, you devil! said Sunasar, grabbing Ebar’s hat and whacking him with it. No good you are.

      You didn’t let me finish, he continued. "Wend is on the other side--of the village. She’s with the rest of the girls. You’re here with us and the rest of the men. Your mind rushed to conclusions much too quickly."

      A sudden gust of air blew out of Jeskun’s stomach as if he had deflated into a shriveled raisin.

      Well, are you going to go see her? said Sunasar.

      Huh? said Jeskun. Oh, right. He stood on his feet, almost losing his balance for a few seconds. He attempted to make his first step, yet was interrupted by a fortified arm pressing against his chest.

      How did you feel, Jubahn? said Ebar, now serious and authoritative.

      I don’t understand.

      How did you feel when I tested you seconds ago? he reiterated.

      Hotter than a witch’s breath! the boy replied.

      Don’t be so quick to anger, Jubahn, said Ebar. Just because you’ve been out cold for a couple of weeks does not excuse you from your Davinian training. You’ll be faced with numerous great losses throughout your Davinian life, and your fortitude must be as strong as a castle. Do you understand?

      Yes, Ebar, said Jeskun.

      "Mastro Ebar to you, First-blade," said Ebar.

      Yes, sorry, Mastro Ebar.

      "Just Mastro will do."

      "Right, Mastro it is."

      Now go and be with your friend, said Ebar. I’m sure she’ll be happy to see you.

      Thank you, Mastro, said Jeskun as he got up and made his way out, passing Sunasar on his way to the door. You too, um--?

      "Mastro as well," said Sunasar with a warm smile.

      Yes, right, he said, clumsily. Thanks.

      Go on, lad, said Sunasar, kicking him in the rear. I’m sure you’re dying to see her. Jeskun gave the wise warrior a huge grin. He ran up to the door, and just as he was to make his way outside, a tall form stood in his way.

      "And where are you heading to?" said Vohro, staring at his pupil.

      Servantu! said Jeskun, pausing for a moment before suddenly embracing his long-lost teacher.

      Come now, said Vohro with a muffle to his speech. There’s no need for that. But Jeskun wouldn’t listen, so he let the boy have his moment. All right, Jubahn.

      I thought you’d perished, said Jeskun, but I had a feeling.

      There was still some hope left inside you, said Vohro. It’s what helped you defeat the beast.

      Ah, the beast, said Jeskun, remembering his former plight. He had forgotten his disturbing run-in with the forest creature. I wasn’t expecting to live through it.

      Well, Jubahn, Davinians always expect the unexpected. But now that you’ve experienced this, you truly know.

      Yes, Servantu, said Jeskun, grabbing at his forearm; he could have sworn it still felt a bit stingy, as if the wound hadn’t completely healed.

      How do you feel? said Vohro.

      Hungry. But other than that, I have my wits about me.

      Yet, I feel there’s something on your mind, Jubahn, said Vohro, looking deep into his soul. Share it with me.

      Jeskun felt somewhat intimidated from his teacher’s insight but then conceded to his wishes. I can’t stop thinking about Wend.

      Ah, that spirited girl!

      So you’ve met her, said Jeskun, smiling now.

      Indeed I have. Wend was healed right after you fought with the beast. Elba healed her without having to reach the school; that lady is a strange wonder. Wend has been traveling with us for the past couple of weeks. She’s a bit brutish, but nevertheless, a good worker; reliable.

      That would be Wend, he whispered.

      Do you miss her? said Vohro as he put his hand on the Jubahn’s shoulder.

      I do.

      "Do you want

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