The Hope of Vitality, page 38
And yet he could find no peace with such a conclusion. The more he pondered it, the more he realized that basing a decision entirely on fear required him to elevate evil more highly than it deserved.
Familiar words from his Holy Book came to mind.
“As for man, his days are like grass.
As a flower of the field, so he flourishes.
For the wind passes over it, and it is gone.
Its place remembers it no more.
But the Lord’s loving kindness is from everlasting to everlasting with those who fear him.”
No human endured for long—he well knew it, having conducted more funerals than he could count. Evil sometimes far outlasted the one who initiated it, but his own experience confirmed that the grace and mercy of the Almighty outlasted everything.
Why should he be afraid?
He saw at last what should have been clear from the beginning—he needed to dispose of the stones in a manner consistent with their original purpose.
No human artisan had crafted the stones. They were neither his, nor anyone else’s, to hide or destroy.
Nor were they to be shunned. Malign intent had played no part in their origins. Fashioned by one who was unfailingly good, they had always been intended to be used.
It occurred to him to wonder if Will and Thomas and the others would have seen it the way he did. He had no way to be certain, but they knew him well, and Will’s letter made it clear they trusted him to do as he saw fit.
Choosing to embrace hope, he decided at last. He would pass them on to three different individuals.
All that remained was to choose the recipients. In recent times the stones had rested in the hands of Thomas and Elena, Amyra and Will, Kamash, and himself. All of them were ordinary people, and none were prepared for what awaited them. Yet each had risen to the challenge. There was no reason to think others would do any less.
He felt confident he would recognize the right people when he came upon them. They would be no more perfect than the previous stewards, but the responsibility for final outcomes rested in the hands of the one who had fashioned and sent the stones.
A time would come for him to yield up the Stone of Vitality. Like Kamash before him, he would do so without regret. Having already exceeded a normal lifespan, he had no desire to live on endlessly. He would miss the familiar surge of joy as the sick unfailingly responded to his prayer, but he was content. Another could take up where he left off.
A great weight had been lifted from his mind. With a nod of satisfaction, Brother Ander shouldered his meager possessions and rose to his feet.
A pre-dawn glimmer had begun to lighten the sky. The sun was ready to burst forth, resurrected, like a butterfly released from its cocoon.
Turning toward the east, he set off with his face to the rising sun.
The End
The saga of The Stone Cycle ends with this final installment
Ready for more?
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Don’t miss the first novel in Allan N. Packer’s second epic fantasy series!
The Hard Edge of Magic (The Ruptured Kingdom Book 1)
Note from the Author
Thank you for reading The Hope of Vitality. Huge thanks for staying on the journey to the very end of the series!
Don’t forget to leave a review. Reviews make a huge difference to me as well as benefiting other readers.
I also very much appreciate feedback from my readers. I’d love to hear what you thought of the series—please feel free to send me an email.
This release ends the saga of The Stone Cycle. If you haven’t read The Seer: A Prequel to The Stone of Knowing, see below for more information.
* * *
What’s next? Having thoroughly enjoyed my years in Arvenon and the surrounding kingdoms, I decided it was time to move on. The result is my second epic fantasy series, The Ruptured Kingdom! Check out the first novel in the series now: The Hard Edge of Magic, described below.
To be kept up to date on new releases, sign up to my mailing list at allanpacker.com. New subscribers will receive exclusive bonus novelettes, including a novelette prequel to The Cost of Knowing. The novelette, The Rending: A Prequel to The Cost of Knowing, is a complete story four chapters (13,000 words) in length. It provides background information on Anneka and her community. The novelette is described below. Paperback and audiobook versions are also available from online bookstores.
Hungry and desperate, Kylen knows what it’s like to be an outcast. Plucked from the streets by a tight-lipped stranger, he begins to dream of a better life. But his rescuer turns out to be a renegade mage. In an instant Kylen finds himself transformed from a person of no account to a dangerous fugitive.
But much more than his life might be at stake. Dark forces are stirring, and an ancient evil is poised, ready to be unleashed on an unsuspecting kingdom. Comfortable and arrogant, the kingdom's mages are bent on destroying the one person capable of saving them.
On the run with his mentor, Kylen tries to ignore the voices whispering about his destiny. Of what use is a fabled destiny when you’re struggling to survive?
If you enjoy epic fantasy with gripping action and relatable characters in a compelling coming of age saga, then try the novels of The Ruptured Kingdom now!
Endings may be beginnings in disguise
Anneka is comfortable and confident, a noblewoman of consequence living a life of privilege. Until the day her world is torn apart.
After losing everything she most cares about, she must abandon her home and her way of life in an attempt to secure the future of those who depend on her.
No one, least of all Anneka, could anticipate a deeper significance to her struggle. Yet her journey will one day influence the fate of kingdoms.
How did the stone come to be where Thomas found it? The answer can be found in a prequel to The Stone of Knowing.
The Seer is a novelette, 5 chapters (13,500 words) in length. It is a standalone story, and as such can be read independently of other books in The Stone Cycle series. The novelette is described below.
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Eyes see no more than a glimpse
Sheylha is a seer—a woman with unique and extraordinary abilities. Powerful men want to control her, to use her to dominate others.
Kalvor is a warrior of unusual tenacity, a hunter who never gives up. Driven by his past, he has become a dangerous enemy.
When Kalvor is sent to find and capture the seer, each of them will be tested in ways they could never have imagined.
In time the outcome will determine the fate of kingdoms.
List of Characters
Agon - previous king of Rogand
Ahreitas - imperial crown prince of Ahr
Ahuzza - Ahran bisri (nobleman), special envoy of the emperor of Ahr
Aiden - crown prince of Arvenon, son of Steffan and Essanda
Akohlsa - Ahran agent working with Kahrlin
Ander - a monk; former Arvenian soldier who traveled with Will and later commanded soldiers at the Battle of Torbury Scarp
Andy - son of Thomas and Elena
Ashloh - princess of Rogand, daughter of King Krasmir and Queen Deka; younger twin of Crown Prince Rimek
Atmek - Rogandan priest reporting to Goultzar, the Archprimus
Amyra - wife of Will Prentis; holder of the Stone of Authority; formerly Ahnya, daughter of Sheylha
Anneka - former noblewoman who leads a community hidden away in the forest near Erestor
Bolnyk - senior Ahran agent
Bezai - Rogandan naval captain
Boedwyk - eccentric Rogandan nobleman
Charlotte - princess of Arvenon, daughter of Steffan and Essanda
Dahra - mother of Amyra; formerly Sheylha, the Seer
Dannhur - Rogandan soldier assigned as a guard to Brother Ander
Deka - queen of Rogand; wife of Krasmir and mother of Crown Prince Rimek, Princess Ashloh, Princess Kyla, and Princess Teylee
Delia - daughter of Thomas and Elena
Delmar - king of Varas, a neighboring kingdom to Arvenon, and ally of King Steffan of Arvenon
Dessue - Ahran guard leader
Drettroth - high-ranking Rogandan nobleman who commanded the Rogandan army during the invasion of Arvenon; known as Vilkami during his childhood
Eisgold - Castelan nobleman formerly commanding the Castelan army; exiled after the Battle of Torbury Scarp for ignoring orders at a crucial moment in the battle
Elena - wife of Thomas Stablehand
Essanda - Queen of Arvenon, formerly a princess of Castel
Ethen - son of Will and Amyra
Galvas - Varasan agent
Gharpin - captain of an Ahran ship
Ghonik - Rogandan soldier assigned as a guard to Brother Ander
Giddel - Castelan envoy, based in Rogand
Goultzar - Archprimus, second in command to the High Priest of the Dark Gods of Rogand
Haldek - former Rogandan soldier who unwittingly helped Will on more than one significant occasion; living in a tiny forest community with Elena, Rubin, and Thomas
Hennis - Arvenian army captain serving under Rufe Sarjant
Hourahn - emperor of Ahr
Kahrlin - senior Ahran agent in Castel
Karevis - Varasan nobleman and commander of the Varasan army; played a key role at the Battle of Torbury Scarp
Kamash - Rogandan who chose to exile himself to a remote island
Krasmir - king of Rogand, formerly a wealthy and powerful Rogandan baron
Kulferan - Rogandan nobleman and army commander
Kyla - princess of Rogand, daughter of King Krasmir and Queen Deka
Kyleth - Rogandan soldier assigned as a guard to Brother Ander
Leonid - prince of Arvenon, son of Steffan and Essanda
Maive - Varasan agent
Maran - senior agent answering to King Delmar of Varas
Millie - daughter of Will and Amyra
Neira - imperial princess of the Empire of Ahr
Pultek - Rogandan naval captain
Ranauld - Arvenian count and a senior leader in the army at Torbury Scarp; a close confidante of King Steffan and a friend of Will Prentis
Rellan - Arvenian soldier from Erestor who led a cavalry force to the battlefield at Torbury Scarp with his twin brother Kuper; married to Anneka; lives at the Newhaven forest community
Rheibas - Grand Vizier of the Empire of Ahr
Rimek - crown prince of Rogand, son of King Krasmir and Queen Deka
Roethen - rich Rogandan merchant living in Rog
Rubin - father of Elena
Rufe Sarjant - respected and physically imposing Arvenian soldier; a close friend of Will Prentis and a key leader in the army
Rupert - king of Castel, brother to Essanda, son of King Istel
Shallam - Rogandan agent, fluent in Ahran
Shulkahr - Ahran leader
Steffan the Second - king of Arvenon
Talmon - Varasan envoy, based in Rogand
Tamara - daughter of Thomas and Elena
Teylee - Rogandan princess, daughter of King Krasmir and Queen Deka, also known as Tasha
Thomas Stablehand - possessor of the Stone of Knowing
Thorsel - Castelan nobleman
Torbury - title granted to Will Prentis by King Steffan; Will Prentis was elevated to the Arvenian peerage as Lord Torbury in honor of his efforts in defeating the Rogandans
Tulinay - Rogandan noblewoman; head of King Krasmir’s spy network
Uman - guard and servant to Princess Neira
Vangellis - Arvenian monk who became a key mentor to Thomas; role model to Brother Ander; killed at Lord Drettroth’s stronghold
Vholahr - senior Ahran general
Will Prentis - commander of the Arvenian army, greatly respected by his soldiers as well as King Steffan due to his remarkable qualities; fluent in Rogandan and widely traveled
Yetvar - leader of Rogandan shepherds
Zattu - senior Rogandan priest
Zhukha - Ahran agent
Research Notes
Spoiler Alert!
The reader is advised to avoid this section before finishing The Hope of Vitality.
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Rappelling with a single rope
In helping Bisri Ahuzza to escape from his room five floors above the ground, Shallam used a technique similar to the Dülfersitz. The technique is demonstrated live here:
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j23eZhTOv3s
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CLQ0IltdYd0
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dülfersitz
The Dülfersitz (named after its inventor, mountaineer Hans Dülfer), also known as body rappel is a classical, or non-mechanical abseiling technique, used in rock climbing and mountaineering. It is not used frequently any more, since the introduction of belay devices. In the Dülfersitz, the rope is wound around the body, and the speed of descent is controlled using the friction of the rope against the body.
The advantages of the Dülfersitz are that one can descend without a climbing harness or belay device, and because the rope is not kinked or subjected to concentrated forces, it does not experience as much wear. The major disadvantage of this method is that intense heat is generated by the friction on the shoulder, neck and thigh, which can be painful, and can damage clothing.
* * *
Giant Sea Creatures
Giant squid and sperm whales are described below, as are sailing ships similar to those depicted in The Stone of Vitality and The Hope of Vitality. In each case, the source is Wikipedia. A few general observations follow.
• It’s easy to lose sight of how small three-masted medieval sailing ships were, especially by modern standards. The carracks used by Christopher Columbus, Vasco de Gama, and Magellan typically measured around 20m in length, less than half as long as many modern superyachts.
• At 16m to 20m from end to end, sperm whales are almost the same length as the carracks used by these explorers.
• Giant squid are smaller, measuring 10m to 13m from the tip of their tentacles to their posterior fins, but not by a lot.
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Giant Squid
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant_squid
The giant squid (Architeuthis dux) is a species of deep-ocean dwelling squid in the family Architeuthidae. It can grow to a tremendous size, offering an example of abyssal gigantism: recent estimates put the maximum size at around 12–13 m (39–43 ft) for females and 10 m (33 ft) for males, from the posterior fins to the tip of the two long tentacles (longer than the colossal squid at an estimated 9–10 m (30–33 ft), but substantially lighter, due to the tentacles making up most of the length). The mantle of the giant squid is about 2 m (6 ft 7 in) long (more for females, less for males), and the length of the squid excluding its tentacles (but including head and arms) rarely exceeds 5 m (16 ft).
The known predators of adult giant squid include sperm whales, pilot whales, southern sleeper sharks, and in some regions killer whales.
The elusive nature of the giant squid and its foreign appearance, often perceived as terrifying, have firmly established its place in the human imagination. Representations of the giant squid have been known from early legends of the kraken through books such as Moby-Dick and Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea on to novels such as Ian Fleming's Dr. No, Peter Benchley's Beast (adapted as a film called The Beast), and Michael Crichton's Sphere (adapted as a film), and modern animated television programs.
In particular, the image of a giant squid locked in battle with a sperm whale is a common one, although the squid is the whale's prey and not an equal combatant.
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Sperm Whale
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sperm_whale
The sperm whale or cachalot (Physeter macrocephalus) is the largest of the toothed whales and the largest toothed predator.
Mature males average 16 metres (52 ft) in length but some may reach 20.7 metres (68 ft), with the head representing up to one-third of the animal's length.
Sperm whales usually dive between 300 to 800 metres (980 to 2,620 ft), and sometimes 1 to 2 kilometres (3,300 to 6,600 ft), in search of food. Such dives can last more than an hour. They feed on several species, notably the giant squid, but also the colossal squid, octopuses, and fish such as demersal rays and sharks, but their diet is mainly medium-sized squid.
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Medieval Sailing Ships
From Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carrack
A carrack is a three- or four-masted ocean-going sailing ship that was developed in the 14th to 15th centuries in Europe, most notably in Portugal. Evolved from the single-masted cog, the carrack was first used for European trade from the Mediterranean to the Baltic and quickly found use with the newly found wealth of the trade between Europe and Africa and then the trans-Atlantic trade with the Americas. In their most advanced forms, they were used by the Portuguese for trade between Europe and Asia starting in the late 15th century, before eventually being superseded in the 17th century by the galleon, introduced in the 16th century.
Famous carracks:
Santa María, in which Christopher Columbus made his first voyage to America in 1492.
• Tons burthen est. 108 tons BM
• Estimated hull length 19 m (62 ft)
• Estimated keel length 12.6 m (41 ft)
• Beam est. 5.5 m (18 ft)
• Draught est. 3.2 m (10 ft)
• Propulsion sail
• Complement 40
São Gabriel, flagship of Vasco da Gama, in the 1497 Portuguese expedition from Europe to India by circumnavigating Africa.
