Love's Labor's Won (52 page)

She lies, but she knows what will happen if she tells them the truth. Shadye told her to kill Sergeant Miles, to drain his magic and life...and compelled her obedience when she refused. She pressed the knife into his flesh and felt a surge of magic, so powerful that even to touch it risked madness; she grasped the magic and hurled it at Shadye, feeling her thoughts burning even as the necromancer exploded into a blaze of light. And now....

It pulses through her thoughts, as if the back of her mind is constantly on fire. She knows that something isn’t right, but she tells herself that she can handle it. (It’s a lie.) Her thoughts seem to be twisted, yet she is still the same person. She snickers cruelly when someone suffers, when someone is in pain, when someone is the victim of a practical joke...something that would have horrified her, once upon a time, is now amusing. And she pranks people too, herself, merely because she’s bored. It’s just a joke, she tells herself... (It’s a lie.)

Jade likes her, she knows; she can use him, twist him until he is bent around her little finger. Alassa owes Emily her life; Imaiqah owes Emily her freedom...they can both be used, perhaps without ever knowing they were being used. And she has so many ideas...once, it would have bothered her to introduce so much so quickly, but now she doesn’t care. Change is coming, she tells herself, and the Nameless World can cope. (It’s a lie.) She will steer the Nameless World’s development for its own good. (It’s a lie.)

And sometimes, when she looks into a mirror, she sees a pair of red eyes looking back.

About the author

Christopher G. Nuttall is thirty-two years old and has been reading science fiction since he was five when someone introduced him to children’s SF. Born in Scotland, Chris attended schools in Edinburgh, Fife and University in Manchester before moving to Malaysia to live with his wife Aisha.

Chris has been involved in the online Alternate History community since 1998; in particular, he was the original founder of Changing The Times, an online alternate history website that brought in submissions from all over the community. Later, Chris took up writing and eventually became a full-time writer.

Current and forthcoming titles published by Twilight Times Books:

Schooled in Magic YA fantasy series

Schooled in Magic
—book 1

Lessons in Etiquette
—book 2

A Study in Slaughter
—book 3

Work Experience
—book 4

The School of Hard Knocks
—book 5

Love’s Labor’s Won
—book 6

Trial by Fire
—book 7

The Decline and Fall of the Galactic Empire military SF series

Barbarians at the Gates
—book 1

The Shadow of Cincinnatus
—book 2

The Barbarian Bride
—book 3

Chris has also produced
The Empire’s Corps
series, the
Outside Context Problem
series and many others. He is also responsible for two fan-made Posleen novels, both set in John Ringo’s famous Posleen universe. They can both be downloaded from his site.

Website:
http://www.chrishanger.net/

Blog:
http://chrishanger.wordpress.com/

Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/ChristopherGNuttall

CURRENT RELEASES BY

Christopher G. Nuttall

What people are saying

Schooled in Magic

“...Schooled in Magic is a fun new take on an otherworld fantasy that brings magic to life. By the end of this book, the reader will feel as if he has been schooled in magic himself. Yet the story has clearly only begun. More please!” ~ Christine Amsden, award-winning author of the Cassie Scot series

Lessons in Etiquette

“...Emily and Alassa are strong female heroes, remaining composed in the face of danger and asserting themselves when necessary. The book speaks to those who wonder how much developed nations should interfere in the cultivation of a developing society. Lessons in Etiquette is a simple story with strong characters and big ideas.” ~
San Francisco Book Review

Schooled in Magic series by Christopher G. Nuttall

SCHOOLED IN MAGIC by Christopher G. Nuttall

Emily is a teenage girl pulled from our world into a world of magic and mystery by a necromancer who intends to sacrifice her to the dark gods for power. Rescued by an enigmatic sorcerer, she discovers that she possesses strange magical powers and must learn how to master them. Book 1.

♦
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LESSONS In ETIQUETTE by Christopher G. Nuttall

After completing her first year of learning magic at Whitehall School, Emily accepts an invitation from Princess Alassa to accompany her on her progress back to her home country of Zangaria, where the princess may meet her future husband. But dark forces are at work, plotting to capture the princess ... and undo all of Emily’s work. Book 2.

Print ISBN: 1-60619-300-6. YA Fantasy

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STUDY IN SLAUGHTER by Christopher G. Nuttall

After the events in Zangaria, Emily returns to Whitehall School for her second year of magical education. But with new teachers, new classes, a murderer running loose and a spy in the school, her second year will be far more adventurous than her first. Book 3.

Print ISBN: 1-60619-302-3. YA Fantasy

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WORK EXPERIENCE by Christopher G. Nuttall

In the summer between Second and Third Year at Whitehall, Emily accompanies Lady Barb on her rounds of the Cairngorm Mountains bringing magical help to the locals and searching for new magicians. But when they stumble across a deadly plot, they discover that the entire country is in grave danger. Book 4

ISBN: 1-60619-304-X. YA Fantasy

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THE SCHOOL OF HARD KNOCKS by Christopher G. Nuttall

A plot is being hatched at Mountaintop Academy, a plot that threatens the lives of Emily and her friends... and the integrity of the Allied Lands. Book 5

ISBN: 1-60619-306-6. YA Fantasy

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