Book 4 in the Transformation Chronicles series.
The Will of the Three is a story that follows on six years after 'Beyond the Great Juncture' Now that Udicia has rid of the Shadows, it's their turn to help transform the galaxy.
In this science fiction story three young Guardians, Sari, Penni and Calana help fight to save nine quadrants half-way across the galaxy and a potential shift in its rotation. There, on a small outpost planet they come face to face with one of most ancient and sinister Shadows that ever roamed the galaxy...
Excerpt:
"This will take you into the Dark Realms, Calana," said Arden. He opened up his hand, and seven Golden Stars flew toward Calana, penetrating where the seven centres resided in her body.
At first, she was a little surprised, but then she became completely thoughtless, as a wave of new awareness washed through her senses. This was the first time she had received the temporary powers of the Incarnation.
"It's time for you to go to the next step. It's time for you to take on a Shadow Master," said Arden.
Calana was twenty-seven, with a solid build and brown hair. Born in Varlia, Udicia, she was as patriotic as the rest of her compatriots. She wore a ninja-style uniform with a symbol of the three-ways woven on her right breast pocket.
"Let's do this," said Calana. She motioned to Arden. "Open it."
"Just before you enter, it will rotate anti-clockwise for a few rotations," said Arden. "This will let you in,undetected. But it will also make you sick."
"I always come back sick," said Calana.
Arden conjured up the special Mandala that was able to penetrate the anti-clockwise motion of the Dark Realms. A greyish Mandala started rotating slowly against the opposite spinning forces.
"Quick!" said Arden.
Calana jumped through the Mandala.
Her target was chosen on the basis of the vibrational knowledge received from the Galactic Council. A few select Guardians were chosen to conduct missions into the border regions of the Dark Realms, where several Shadow Masters had recently infiltrated. This was the region between the Transformed Realms and Dark Realms, and was potential ground for expansion of the Dark Realms.
The furthest reaches of the Galaxy were expected to transform much more quickly than they did in the past. So it was important that these Shadow Masters were removed quickly.
After Daniel Withers was given the seven Golden Stars to defeat Gylith, the Council decided that it was time to empower many Guardians with these new strengths. This would also let the Incarnations put more of their attention on the Shadow Wraiths.
Calana had been trained to handle some overbearing negativity, but nothing had prepared her for her entrance into this world. The planet was called Vorne. When she materialised, she vomited violently over the grass.
After regaining her composure, she moved swiftly across the countryside. She knew where the Shadow Master was, because the Oracle was indicating his whereabouts by radiating heat. She was running into the outskirts of a large, regional city. The air was thick with smog, and the houses around looked like they should have been condemned.
She had seen it all before, in varying degrees, across the border regions. The more Shadows on a planet, the more misery, death and destruction.
A vehicle suddenly rounded a corner, its headlights almost blinding her. It braked hard, and several figures jumped out, the doors rising like a lady beetle's wings.
"Way past curfew," said one of the soldiers.
She instantly knew, through the Oracle, that these soldiers were under the influence of a Shadow Lord. She threw the Oracle, and the discus made its rounds, knocking the guns out of their hands. She engaged the unarmed soldiers with wild karate kicks and flying punches, before catching the returned discus.
After all was quiet, she looked inside the vehicle and noticed a bulky computer screen protruding from the dashboard. She ran a finger on the screen, but it didn't respond to her touch. She felt something underneath it, something jutting out. It turned out to be a keyboard.
She was familiar with this old technology, as it was not dissimilar to that on Udicia. However, lately she had been to so many different worlds that she was becoming accustomed to more evolved computing. She'd seen keyboards and mice, touch-screens, holo-graphic controls, voice-only computers, and even robots.
She tapped quickly on the keyboard, and a schematic of the region displayed on the green LCD screen. This would lead her to the location of their leader. She jumped in the passenger seat, punching a soldier through the window, and drove down the road.