Dragon Force 1: Invisible Born Read online

  “Wait, what about Jore?” I asked. “Are we just going to leave him here?”

  “You know what, you have a good point. I figured he’d be out long enough to give us the time we need, but better to take more time than less.” Dean moved back to the emissary’s side, and rolled him through the trapdoor. Jore landed with a loud, painful-sounding thump. Dean pulled the trapdoor shut and latched it closed. “That’ll buy us time to gather what we need and get out of the village.”

  “Who we need, you mean,” Shula said.

  “That too.”

  The charmers marched purposefully ahead while my brain struggled to catch up. When they noticed I wasn’t right behind them, and so neither was Rosie, they stopped. Dean said, “Don’t worry, we saw this coming. We’re ready for it.” Even though he couldn’t see me, he must have sensed my concern. I wouldn’t have been surprised if it was oozing off me in tangible waves.

  “You are?”

  “Absolutely. We’ve got this. Now come on. We have to move.” Dean successfully brought an arm to my shoulders, and led me as he walked, Rosie immediately behind me. “Just trust and believe in your faithum.”

  It seemed as if I was being given little choice. It was either quake in my boots with fear, just as the chieftain would want, or believe in faithum—something that had been forbidden to me all my life.

  Even if I hadn’t planned it, I’d already made my choice. Each step forward brought me closer to a future free of the chieftain’s tyranny and a constant threat of death. Each step brought me closer to understanding myself and why I was the way I was, so different from everyone else, even my twin.

  For the first time in my life, I felt as if I might soon be ready to be seen. After a life lived in the shadows, I was ready to step into the light. And as I walked next to the dragon charmers and a small dragon that was as unique as I was, I glimmered, and for the briefest of moments, my invisibility fell. I walked as a member of the Ooba tribe, strong and proud, ready to take on the world and my role in it, for all to see.

  Only no one noticed my moments of visibility. Our eyes were trained forward, toward the path that would deliver us somewhere unknown, but toward the honoring of who we were (the only path ever worth walking). Together, Dean, Shula, Rosie, and I were a force to be reckoned with, even if Pumpoo didn’t know it yet.

  I might not have known where I was going, but finally, I was moving forward with strength. I wasn’t a mistake, I was a gift. I wasn’t a burden, I was a weapon in taking on Pumpoo and setting right all he’d done wrong.

  Pumpoo claimed he wasn’t afraid of anything, but he should be afraid of me. Because I was finished being afraid. I wouldn’t cower any longer. I was ready to be all I was capable of becoming.

  Invisible Bound - Book 2

  Continue Anira’s adventures in book 2 of Dragon Force.

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  Please write a review for this book on Amazon. Your review doesn’t have to be long, just honest. The more reviews my books have, the more visible they become, the more books I sell, and the more magical stories I can afford to write. It’s a cycle you can support with something as simple as a review.

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  Acknowledgments

  I’d write no matter what, because telling stories is my passion, but the following people make creating worlds (and life) a joy. I’m eternally grateful for the support of my beloved, James, my mother, Elsa, and my three daughters, Catia, Sonia, and Nadia. They’ve always believed in me, even before I published a single word. They help me see the magic in the world around me, and more importantly, within.

  A big thank you also to my Musketeers, Malcolm, Debbie, and Leslie, who were the first to love Anira’s story, and who continually encourage me to write more magical books.

  I’m thankful for every single one of you who’ve reached out to tell me that one of my stories touched you in one way or another, made you smile or cry, or kept you up long past your bedtime. You’ve given me reason to keep writing.

  Read more by Lucía Ashta

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  MAGICAL ARTS ACADEMY

  (Young adult paranormal fantasy - a Witching World spinoff series)

  First Spell

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  Unexpected Agents

  Improbable Ally

  Questionable Rescue

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  Castle’s Curse *

  Spirited Escape *

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  Magic Ignites *

  Powers Unleashed *

  PLANET ORIGINS

  (New adult space fantasy)

  Planet Origins

  Original Elements

  Holographic Princess

  Planet Origins Omnibus, Books 1-3

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  DRAGON FORCE

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  Invisible Born

  Invisible Bound

  Invisible Rider

  POCKET PORTALS

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  The Orphan Son *

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  Immortalium *

  (* coming soon)

  About the author

  Lucía Ashta, a former attorney and architect, is an Argentinian-American author who lives in Sedona with her beloved and three daughters. She published her first story (about an unusual Cockatoo) at the age of eight, and she’s been at it ever since.

  Sign up HERE to learn about her new releases.

  Lucía on the web:

  LuciaAshta.com

  [email protected]