The Cerberus Rebellion (A Griffins & Gunpowder Novel) by Joshua Johnson

boy. There were books that recounted the history of every noble house in Ansgar and every major war that had ever been raged over the face of Zaria.
    Raedan set his lantern on one of the tables and found the books he had come for: a thick tome bound in red leather with a rune so ancient inscribed on the cover that even Damon didn't know what it meant. He picked up a pair of books bound in black leather, whispered a spell over them and spread the three out over one of the tables.
    He had just sat down to read when he was interrupted by the sound of leather shoes scraping across stone. The servants knew better than to travel into this vault and the guards would have worn boots. He touched the first two fingers to the onyx in his amulet and closed his eyes. His mind reached out into the darkness and sought out the shadows.
    He had not yet mastered seeing through the shadows, but he could feel their presence and sense the light that caused them. Someone was approaching with a lantern; someone tall and slim. Raedan drew his revolver from its holster and pulled back on the hammer.
    The distinctive click of the hammer setting echoed through the small room and into the vault outside. The soft scraping sound stopped.
    “ My lord,” Auberon Strait called out.
    “ You may enter,” Raedan said. He let the hammer down on his revolver and slid it back into its holster.
    “ My apologies, my lord,” the half-elf said as he stepped through the doorway. “I was told that I could find you here.”
    “ What do you need?” Raedan asked. He closed the tomes and stepped between Auberon and the table.
    “ I thought that I might be of some assistance,” Auberon said. He set his lantern on a hook. “I know that you speak elven, but I was raised with it.”
    “ Where did you learn elven?” Raedan asked. “I was under the impression that you had been raised by your mother; a human woman.”
    “ I was,” Auberon confirmed. “But I was raised in the house of a noble. I learned from his advisor.”
    “ My elven is sufficient,” Raedan said. He lifted his lantern off of the table.
    “ Then perhaps I could help you expand your knowledge of the abilities that flow through you.”
    “ What do you know of that?” Raedan's eyes narrowed as he studied the half-elf. The advisor's expression was neutral and he emanated calm.
    “ I may not have mastered the gift, my lord, but I know those that have.” Auberon flicked through the pages of an open book. “You would not have come down here if you did not seek to expand your knowledge, outside of the guidance that Damon is willing to provide you.”
    “ And how can you help me expand my knowledge if you have not masterd the gift?”
    “ I may not be able to bend the shadows or light to my will, or heal or kill with a thought, but I have knowledge that can help you achieve whatever goal it is that you seek,” Auberon said. “I have served as advisor for several nobles throughout Ansgar and in that time I have learned many secrets.”
    “ It's late,” Raedan said with a wave toward the door. “We should return to the keep.”
    “ I can tell you where there are more books, books that include many different forms of magic,” Auberon said.
    Raedan stopped.
    “ Tell me more.”
     

Chapter 4 - Magnus
     
    Magnus Jarmann sat alone in his study.
    The room was large and square. Lanterns had been lit along each wall and bookshelves were pushed up against the walls. Several large tables were spread throughout the room, surrounded by luxurious leather chairs. Maps and markers covered several of those tables and the leftover plates from a late meal were still strewn over another.
    He waited until the door to his study was closed and locked before he reached for the envelope and a knife. No seal had been pressed into the blue wax, but the small blot of gold told him all he needed to know about the letter’s sender. The seal of the royal family of Nordahr would have been pressed into that wax, had