Season of Sacrifice (Blood of Azure Book 1) Jonathan Michael (red novels .txt) 📖

to boast about, Stone. In fact, I intend for you to maintain its secrecy. Elder here is like family, so we can trust him.” Arden winks at me. “This is a priceless family heirloom with history in the McLarin family. I have kept its existence concealed because there are many who would find much value in what our family considers priceless. I’m sure you’d like to know how it acquired the name Life Bringer?” All three children, Stone, Jaymes and I, all nod our heads, eager to hear the tale.

“But that will happen at a later date,” Shae pipes in. “We have an Autumnal Festival to attend.”

“And you know, son…” Arden grins and pats him on the back. “…in the right hands, you never know, it may just hold true to its legend.” He draws a hard pause as his grin fades. He shakes off whatever he was pondering. “Alright. We’ve spent too much time admiring the prize. It’s my fault, I know, but we need to be on our way as your mother suggests. Shall we?”

Arden pulls open the entry door, a thick oak slab with a collage of ornate wild game carvings trying to escape it. It’s inlaid with pearls representing the beast’s eyes and ivory chips where the various beast’s fangs are bared, and I’m fairly certain the glistening gold hue covering the entirety of the door is some kind of gold-infused sealant. The McLarin’s entry door is more expensive than my family’s entire estate.

We step outside, and awaiting our departure in the courtyard is a luxurious carriage. It’s large enough to hold all five of us and quite possibly a second family. It looks to be made primarily of a dark mahogany wood with luminous white trim, polished iron wheels, and sapphire-blue fabric both draped over the entrance and upholstered to the body, giving it a soft aesthetic touch.

Even more eye-popping than the carriage are the bridled beasts in front of it. Two massive and brilliant-white stags with antlers branching out thrice as wide as their bodies are standing restless, eager to get moving. These creatures aren’t supposed to be real, let alone be harnessed to a carriage. Similar to the fabled unicorns, they are believed to be enchanted and untouchable, but I’m now realizing the White Hart is actually real. And…there are two of them!

“White Harts!” I exclaim, unconvinced of what I’m seeing.

Arden lets out a small chuckle. “No, no. They’re mere everyday stags. Their coats and masses have been manipulated to make one wonder. It is all for show. I’m not fond of the deceit, but according to Parliament, my role as Architect requires heads to turn. It allows for a certain status to be upheld and it’s a battle not worth fighting. Real White Harts, if they can be addressed as such, are mere legend.”

They have a life most aspire to. I’m grateful to be invited into it.

This isn’t the first festival I’ve experienced, but it is my first Autumnal Festival. At the age of five, I did get to partially experience the Vernal Festival while my family was traveling through the Crimson Capital on a holiday. That celebration was bursting with extravagant seasonal decorations, enchanting song and dance, and seasonal foods that were exotic to my senses. I’m eager to see what the Autumnal Festival has in store for us.

Our arrival couldn’t come soon enough even though it’s a short carriage ride. It quickly becomes a history lesson for me. Arden, knowing my knowledge of Susy is lacking, insists on informing me of the basic teachings.

“So, Elder, what do you know about the Seezuhn faith?” Stone’s father asks.

“I know Susy is your god and that he magically makes the seasons come and go. That’s about it.”

Arden smiles and replies, “Yeah, I suppose it’s something like that. Let me fill you in on some of the details, though.”

“Father…” Stone shakes his head.

Arden waves him off. “Throughout the generations, there have been many interpretations to the Advocates’ preaching. This has led to several outcrops of the House of Season. Some believe Susy was not a man at all, but rather an ever-present god that knows all and created all. Others believe Susy did, in fact, roam this land and is the creator of all life and even created man in his image. Maybe the most eccentric, Susy enforces balance in the world among all things, not just life. A supersymmetry. And we are all governed by his laws. There are many other beliefs as well, but all were derived from the first religion. The Seezuhn religion.

“In this base religion—“

“Daaaad…” Jaymes interjects. “…nobody wants to hear your stories about Susy. Tell us more about the swords.” Both Stone’s and Jay’s faces brighten. Shae, sitting next to the two, offers a subtle giggle.

“No, no, no, no.” Arden waves his arms, flustered by the interruption. “I’m going to finish what I was saying. Plus, I’m speaking to Elder, not you two. Now…Elder…” He shuffles his posture on the bench seat so he faces me. “Susy is not the creator of Azure, the creator of life, or even the seasons. Susy is depicted as a deity because he regulates the four seasons. He is known to be a Hybreed who lived among us on our moon ages ago. However, not as a man, but something more spirit-like. There are testimonials from respectable men who witnessed his being and it is all written in the Chronicles of Susy.

“And to go back even further, it is preached that Susy originated from a celestial kingdom with blue waters, where all was blissful with limitless boundaries to passion and success. However, the beings of that world became too greedy. They lusted not for power or riches, but for knowledge. Faith was not enough for them. Simply believing was a thing only for children or the uneducated. They worshiped science with no room