Chosen by Kristen Day Read Free Book Online Page A

“She possesses every quality required of a leader in our world and more.  Qualities you have never, and will never, possess - purity, strength, grace and most importantly, humility.”
                  “Humility, weakness - same thing.” She dismissed my words with a flip of her hand.
                  “The prophecy speaks for itself.  Even you can’t argue with that,” I retorted. “She is my destiny.  And I, hers.”
                  “All I hear is blah, blah, blah-I want to have sex with her-blah, blah, blah.  Lust turns the strongest of men into invalids and I simply couldn’t let that happen.  Your essence is far too important for what is ahead of me.”
                  “Essence becomes useless without love.  Love turns the strongest of men into warriors.  When a man has someone to fight for, he’s capable of moving mountains.”
                  Her grin dropped and she stomped over to me with vapor rolling off of her skin.  She stood in front of me, silent for a moment, then grinned wickedly and unrolled the leather case she had been clutching in her hand.  She slid something silver out and held it up so I could see it.  A syringe.
                  “I think I’m in the mood to play nurse.” Her eyes sparkled as she moved towards me.  I tried to fight the vines, but the excruciating pain that shot through me sucked what little energy I did have completely dry. “Now don’t tire yourself out, Love.  I need to get a good strong sample.”
                  At her words, another pair of vines shot out from the stone wall and slithered around my left arm; securing it tightly.  My trace had become dull in the last few days under whatever vacuum she had placed on my prison. 
                  She slowly ran a finger down my cheek and smiled sympathetically. “Your sacrifices will not be in vain.  I can promise you that.” She dropped her hand and her golden eyes hardened, “But the slow, painful deterioration of your soul will be.  I’ve decided you owe me that.  It’s the least you can do.”
                  “So, are you looking forward to spending eternity on Tartarus, or will an exception be made to send you straight to the pits of fire?” I asked in the same tone I’d use to ask about the weather.
                  “You really think my own mother would sentence me to an eternity of hell?” she chuckled.    “Please tell me you aren’t that simpleminded.”
                  “You know as well as I do that a certain level of evil is not tolerated.  Your mother’s decision will be overridden by the-“
                  “Shut up!” she yelled and slapped me across the face.  It stung, but I hid it beneath a purposefully smug smile -- which only made her vexation spill over. “Enough of this!  You are no more than a means to an end.  You will never be Prime.  You will never see your tramp or your family again.  You are nothing .” With that, she uncapped the syringe and drove it into my forearm; right through the eye of the skull.  My thoughts turned to Stasia as my world filled with pain and faded into darkness.
                  The next time I awoke, it was to hushed voices and the clicking of heels on the stone floor.  It was much darker, but I could still make out two figures standing on the other side of the cavern.  Reaching out with what essence I had left, I knew that one of the figures was Nadia.  The refreshing smell of sea oats told me she was of the sea, but the cold, slimy fingers of her essence proved that it had been tainted by corruption long ago.
                  “We only have a matter of days,” the unknown woman said. “The moon must be at its highest when the transfer takes place.  We have no room for mistakes.”
                  “I’ll hold up my end of the bargain,