David Bishop and the Mystic of Creation T.C. Crawford (icecream ebook reader txt) 📖

you would be successful right away, only that you would be successful. Prophecy is not always as it seems, this much I have come to expect!” she said, smiling at her friend.

It had been nearly a week since the battle of Eldergate where David had faced General Octavian Krauss and inadvertently given him the surge of power necessary to unleash the Defiant One and his army of demons from the Dark Abyss. David couldn’t help but blame himself for the outcome of the battle, knowing that without his powers, the General may have never unleashed the Mystic of Destruction from his prison, and therefore, the world would not currently be facing the threat of extinction.

Since his release, the Defiant One had completely destroyed everything within the Northern Kingdom. The small, isolated settlements throughout the Outer Woods from Eldergate to West Post had all been abandoned at the end of the battle, with only a few stubborn-willed citizens staying behind while the rest fled to the safety of the city-kingdom of Ravenfell.

Those who chose to stay behind were slaughtered mercilessly by the Wolf Guard and the demon army, not a single life was spared.

King Eldergate and his loyal followers had fortunately made it out safely before the raids began and were now within the castle walls of Ravenfell, but they knew it was only a matter of time before the Defiant One and his demon army set his sights on Ravenfell, eager to squash the remaining resistance within its borders.

“Rex and the others are gathering in the meeting room.  They told me to make sure you were up and ready.” Erin said gently to David as he struggled to get out of bed, “I know you’ve had a rough night. We’ve all struggled sleeping lately…but we need you, the world needs you.”

She gently lifted David’s chin and looked deep into his eyes. She could see the pain he kept hidden locked away as he feigned a smile. She kissed him gently on his lips, longing to take away his pain, but knowing only one thing ever would – defeating the Defiant One and fixing the mess that he felt solely responsible for.

Sensing that her work had been done, Erin started towards the door. “The meeting is starting soon, don’t be late!” she called back to David as she exited the room.

David flung himself back on his bed and sighed deeply before mustering the will to get up and face the day.

He made his way to his dresser where he found a small serving dish with a plate of warm eggs and biscuits that Erin had left for him when she arrived. He quickly inhaled them before getting dressed and heading for the meeting room.

When David arrived, Erin was already seated towards the middle of the long table listening to Rex and the others discuss the defenses of the valley.

Rex was the king of Ravenfell and had been a loyal friend to David and Erin since their flight from Eldergate during the General’s coup. He had defended them from the Royal Guards who had been sent to capture them in West Post and had played a vital role in helping the loyalists face the undead army and gain access to the capital city during the battle of Eldergate.

He now stood at the end of the long table bent over a map of the valley, deep in discussion with King Eldergate, Tyrius Vanderbolt, and General Ryan.

David made his way across the room towards Erin, sharing a brief intimate smile with her before taking the seat to her left. He felt her fingers intertwine with his own beneath the table and reveled in the comfort that it gave him.

“David, glad you could join us!” said King Eldergate in his deep booming voice.

He was an elderly king, tall and wide, but strong despite his old age. He had a thick, bushy white beard and equally white wavy hair that rested just below his wide shoulders. Despite having just lost his kingdom, he seemed in relatively good spirits.

Like Erin, he was a firm believer in the prophecies of old – prophecies that predicted the dark times that they now found themselves in – and whole heartedly believed that David would find a way to defeat the Defiant One and his armies and help restore peace back to the lands as the prophecy foretold.

David wished everyone would stop putting so much faith in the prophecy – he felt he had already let everyone down and didn’t know how he would ever live up to their expectations.

David nodded respectfully to the King and focused his attention on the discussion at hand.

“We must focus our efforts on the mountain pass to ensure the demons never make their way into the valley,” continued Rex. “That is our best chance of survival. If we allow them to break through the pass and into the valley, they will have more room to spread out and their numbers will quickly overwhelm our forces.”

“He’s right,” said General Ryan, looking over the maps spread out across the table. “Our best chance is to bottleneck their forces at the top of the mountain here. If we can do that, we may just have a chance at holding them back.”  he said, pointing towards the entrance into the valley.

“But for how long?” asked King Eldergate, “We can’t hold them off forever!” he said, to which everyone nodded in agreement.

“No…we can’t” confirmed Tyrius, “That is why it is important for David to do whatever he can to prepare for the moment when he must face the Defiant One and defeat him, sending him back into the depths of the Dark Abyss once again. He is our only hope if we are ever to survive this conflict.” he said, causing everyone to turn and look at David.

David felt like a child under the gaze of so many powerful men. He knew what they expected from him, but he felt he could never live up to them. He had tried