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  Shiva XIV

  Book One

  of The Shiva XIV Series

  by

  Lyra Shanti

  Copyright © 2014 Lyra Shanti

  2nd Edition © 2016

  Published by Timely Tales Press

  Cover Art by Timothy Casey

  All rights reserved

  ISBN-10: 069235638X

  ISBN-13: 978-0692356388

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Dedicated to my beloved soul-mate, Timothy, and my amazing phoenix-sis, Juniper. Your giving hearts and unwavering support kept me going in the darkest of times. Without the two of you, I never would have completed this story or found my true voice. I love both of you beyond what words can say.

  Table of CONTENTS

  Prologue: Birth of Shiva the Fourteenth 1

  The Great Paradox 5

  The Influence of Meddhi-Lan 12

  Visions of the Bodanya 21

  Pei's Expectation 35

  Time to Wake Up 41

  The Dream 49

  The Morning of the Coronation 59

  The End of Their Days 85

  The Darkness of the Tomb 94

  The Coming of Yol Notama 107

  The Aftermath 113

  A New Destination 118

  Welcome to Xen 129

  The Council's Conclusion 134

  Metamorphosis 142

  The Uncomfortable Exchange 146

  Home Away From Home 161

  Topsy Turvy 191

  The Art of Battle 218

  The Lurking Shadow 254

  Glossary 297

  More Books by Lyra Shanti 304

  Author Bio 305

  Prologue: Birth of Shiva the Fourteenth

  When the Queen first ordered her son be proclaimed “Shiva the Fourteenth,” it was already known to the high priest of the planet Deius that the infant would be the one to bring balance to the stars.

  He was judged, and bathed, and welcomed with holy water, as with any other child born into the royal line of The Shiva. However, from the first sight of the child's body, the high priest knew that Queen Amya’s son was the next true Bodanya, the second coming of The Great Adin.

  So they prayed. They prayed into the early morning onward to the Gods of old while the priests sang and chanted, waiting for a sign or guidance.

  By the third evening, the high priest, known as Meddhi-Lan, declared he had been given understanding by the previous Shiva about the child's true identity. Then, the priests brought the child to the altar where only his birth mother was allowed to be present among them.

  Meddhi-Lan held him up to the ancient statue, The Star of the Sun, so that the child's eyes could look upon the spirits with awareness.

  After gently placing the newborn back onto the blanketed altar, Meddhi-Lan walked to the center of The Holy Room while facing The Council, The Holy Order of The Dei. All the priests of The Dei then gathered in a circle around the altar, praying silently for guidance from their revered Gods of old.

  Speaking with a resounding, clear voice, Meddhi-Lan declared, “No knife, nor stone, nor instrument of incision shall wound this child, for he will be now and forever known to us as The Neya Bodanya!

  Silence fell upon The Council as they could not believe what they heard. No one had been named the next Bodanya for hundreds of years.

  Meddhi-Lan wet the boy’s forehead with colored sand and water mixed with scented oils. He then began chanting in a droning hum, which had been performed by The Holy Dei for thousands of years. With this ritual came the collective resonance of the entire priesthood. One by one, their song grew greater with each voice contributing to the epic drone.

  Joining their collective song, the priestesses of the temple fell to the floor in the ecstasy of their tradition. Then, the royal infant was raised by the hands of the high priest. Meddhi-Lan waited a few moments, and with his eyes alone, he asked those present for silence.

  “This boy has been named Ayn by his birth mother, Queen Amya. It is her right to call him this, but no commoner in the kingdom shall know him as Ayn. He will be known henceforth only as Shiva the Fourteenth.”

  Then Pei, the adolescent student priest of Meddhi-Lan, raised his hand, holding a replica of the great sun-star, Siri, and proclaimed, “All praise the Neya Bodanya, Shiva the Fourteenth! Rejoice! Adin! Adin!”

  Soon, they all began repeating Pei's chant as the infant was anointed by Meddhi-Lan with the symbol of the Siri-Star, the revered sun of Deius, encircling it with the holy light of Adin. Even Queen Amya chanted, though she was not particularly religious. She was, however, extremely proud of her beloved child.

  Gently, with his forefinger, the high priest drew the symbols upon the child's forehead, coloring it with gold and silver sand. Then he, and all the priests and priestesses, fiercely prayed.

  “Please, great Siri, the holiest of our Gods” said Meddhi-Lan in a hushed voice, “protect this boy from the fate of The Adin, for he may be The Neya Bodanya, but he is also an innocent, and worthy of a long, happy life. I beg you to be merciful in your judgment, and in return, I will guide and protect this blessed child for as long as I live. Holy Holy, Un-Ahm!”

  After his quiet prayer, Meddhi-Lan looked into the baby's eyes; how blue they were, how full of deep understanding. Just then, Ayn smiled with a radiant glow, and then grabbed onto Meddhi-Lan's finger. The high priest smiled in return, for he knew it was an answer from the Gods... or so he chose to believe.

  Chapter 1: The Great Paradox

  Meddhi-Lan sat upon the floor of his room and opened his private scroll. He remembered the ordeal of The Bodanya's birth with fondness, yet also with sadness and concern. He dipped his pen, which only the high priests of The Dei could manipulate, into the plasma-ink and gave one touch to the scroll. The neon white soon became a visible, clear blue with the words written:

  In the year of 12.120.47, our Lord, The Bodanya Shiva, The Second Coming of Adin, was given to us on this Day of Seed, the twelfth of Api.

  He then meditated, focusing his thoughts deeper into his memory, trying his best to depict The Bodanya’s birth as accurately as possible. As the pen twitched, ready to write the words from his mind, Meddhi-Lan mentally blocked the pen's movement as his thoughts could not help but turn inward with worry.

  Holiest of Gods, is this your plan? he questioned in his mind. He did not wait for an answer, and was about to scribe more of his testimony into words upon paper, when Pei, his student priest, knocked gently on the door. “Enter,” said the high priest while still in meditation.

  Pei bowed halfway in reverence to his mentor. “My Lan,” he said, “Amun-Lan and some of the other priests wish to speak with you. They have requested that you meet them in The Holy Room.”

  Meddhi-Lan opened his eyes, awakening to conscious thought as the plasma-powered pen gently fell onto the smooth carpet of midnight blue.

  “Tell me, Pei, do you think as they do about the matter in which they are concerned?” the high priest asked as he carefully watched his student.

  “I know not,” replied Pei, trying not to offend his beloved teacher.

  “You should speak your mind, young Ney,” Meddhi-Lan said while getting up to redress himself in his proper blue Dei robes. He then turned to his student and spoke, dead calm and direct.

  “You are frightened too. Are you not?”
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br />   Pei did not like to be referred to as “Ney,” for he was very near to reaching full priesthood, and soon would have the respect of his teacher, as well as the rest of The Dei. Nevertheless, he understood his place and took a moment to respond, unsure of what his answer should be.

  Finally, Pei replied, “Yes, a little, my Lan.”

  “It frightens you... because of the unusual nature of his being?” questioned the high priest with his left eyebrow raised.

  “Yes... and no,” said Pei shaking his head and feeling naive in his thoughts, which he knew his teacher would undoubtedly sense.

  “Yes and no? I assume you are in a state of unbalance - of paradox - and not of the oneness of The Un?”

  It was Meddhi-Lan’s way to gently tease his student. Pei was a highly intelligent young man, and near his attainment of awareness, but he still could not look upon his teacher with equal mind. His robes were of red with no blue along their trimming, and he did not yet shave his forehead or wear the belt of a Lan. Though he still had many doubts, he was loved like a son by his teacher and was Meddhi-Lan’s favorite among the student priests.

  “I… do not mean to speak in a paradox, my Lan. I simply have not yet come into the light. I admit, though, it is difficult to understand the meaning of The Un’s ultimate design when a child has been born to us who is so... unusual.”

  “Yes, Pei,” said Meddhi-Lan as he gently rested his hand on his student’s shoulder, “and we must expect that there will be some opposition to my pronouncement that he is indeed the reincarnation of The Great Adin.”

  “Because of fear?” Pei asked nervously.

  “Yes,” replied Meddhi-Lan, “and also because of the length of time that has passed before his return to us. It has been hundreds of years since The Bodanya has chosen to live and walk upon our planet - so many years, in fact, that The Council was already in disbelief when Amya gave birth to him.”

  “But she was the woman to conceive amongst the white flowers in the time of The Great Adin’s rebirth,” argued Pei unnecessarily.

  “Yes, she was,” replied Meddhi-Lan with a slight smile.

  “And so the prophecy has been fulfilled.”

  “Of course,” sighed the high priest as he placed his unfinished scroll back into an oval chest that hung on the wall. “It has all been written and prophesied, my young student.”

  “Then…” said Pei as he forced himself to ask, “why was The Bodanya born with… both male and female flesh?”

  Meddhi-Lan winced at the rawness of Pei’s question. He stared at the ancient blue and silver chest on the wall, adorned with the holy markings of The Dei, as if looking for an answer within its design.

  “This was not foreseen… was it, my Lan?”

  The high priest slowly turned to face his student.

  “No, Pei. It was not.”

  --

  For nearly a thousand years, The Council of The Holy Dei had believed themselves on the brink of doom. The galaxy of Un-Ahm was slowly becoming desolate and barren. With each passing year of drained plasmic energy and decreasing power supply, the people of Deius looked to The Dei for wisdom and light.

  This was now the time of The Great Paradox, also known by the few remaining scientists on Deius as Polarity Syndrome. It was first suspected by the priests of Deius when the sun of the planet Hun imploded, killing all of Hun's inhabitants instantaneously. Scientists disregarded the event as an isolated, natural incident within The Un, but the Deiusian holy men saw it differently. They believed the death of Hun was a sign from the Gods, and a warning of the doom to follow. The Dei priests believed Hun's demise was the first massively tragic event in a series of horrific disasters yet to come.

  Soon after, fear led to panic and panic lead to war. Planets rivaled each other for control of plasma, and for religious reasons as well. Adding to the calamity, the other known galaxy with intelligent life, Dru-Ahm, refused to offer any aid, for fear of bringing war and possible contamination upon themselves. The people of Dru-Ahm had always considered themselves to be higher life-forms than most and had made it clear to the planets of the Un-Ahm galaxy that they would be facing their plasma crisis alone.

  The years then passed with much anxiety and paranoia while planets fought over who would have the last controlling share of plasma. Soon, the over use of plasma began destroying plant life and subsequently caused sickness in a wave of mass proportions, especially among the poor and destitute.

  After the planet Sirin had become nearly barren of its vast oceans and jungles, the planet leaders of the Un-Ahm galaxy were asked by the queen of Deius, Queen Amya, to sign a treaty which promised to mine plasma carefully and on rare occasion. Hoping to end the spread of Plasma Sickness, the leaders anxiously signed the treaty. However, the illness still spread – even to the wealthy and privileged. No one seemed safe, and it made most either look to their Gods or to science for the answers.

  The modern citizens of Deius, however, no longer recalled the days of science; they looked only to the priests of their kingdom for comfort and truth.

  Not since the original Bodanya, The Great Adin, had the Holy Order of the Dei any insight into what may solve their crisis. Though they believed many incarnations of the Gods had secretly graced their sands throughout time, only the pure bloodline from the “Shiva” royal name was trusted by The Council to be the true heir to the Deiusian Kingdom.

  The royal line of Shiva began with the first incarnation of Adin himself, in the year of 11.213.70. It was written that during Adin's rule as king, The Dei believed he would define existence in his own lifetime, as well as heal the power supply of the galaxy.

  However, according to legend, in his twenty sixth year - only three years after his crowning - Adin, Shiva the First, was violently murdered by the hands of his own half-brother, Siri, whom the planet Sirin had been named after. It was also written that, even though Adin had appointed his younger brother as king of Sirin, Siri was jealous of his older brother's power, for he wished to become the new Bodanya, the universe's holiest of spirit-guardians, as well as high ruler of all the planets of the Un-Ahm galaxy.

  According to The Dei's legend, Adin forgave Siri just before he died, making it possible for all men to forgive those who succumb to their jealousy and hatred.

  After three days of resting within his sarcophagus, Adin's spirit rose from his body and spoke with his brother, giving him a full pardon, as well as counseling him on how to rule Sirin with light and love.

  Unfortunately, after years of war and excessive mining of plasma, Sirin's lush lands eventually fell into ruin and despair, causing most Sirini to question their once great king, as well as their own beloved Gods of old.

  Thus, the use of prophecy was even more depended upon. Priests focused all their minds and souls into the gift of prediction and meditation, in order to foretell the next coming of The Bodanya Shiva.

  Through the hundreds of years that followed, twelve of The Shiva royal line had lived and died. Unlike The Great Adin, however, they were kings, not Gods. Many had spoken with truth and wisdom, but none had cured the galaxy of its ever-draining energy.

  Some blamed the chaotic nature of the stars. Some blamed the ones from the past who did not care for their planets. Some even blamed scientists for discovering the uses of plasma in the first place. Most, however, simply became desperate in their hope for a man to come and save them from their doom, as it had been prophesied for so many years.

  On his deathbed, Shiva the Thirteenth promised his priests that he would return in spirit-form to light the way for the return of the first Bodanya Shiva, The Great Adin. He had told his high priest, Amun-Lan, that Adin would be reincarnated in the season of The Seed, which was now upon them.

  And so it was, and so it shall be, Meddhi-Lan heard the famous Deiusian chant spoken in his mind. He had been given the title of High Priest from his predecessor and teacher, Amun-Lan, many years ago, and now, after receiving the vision of Adin's return, he embraced his role as the Neya
Bodanya’s Lan. In fact, he felt nothing but pride. No matter who might contest his decision to teach the God-child, he vowed he would do so until his death, for he loved the boy with all of his soul, and in a way no other priest could understand. Despite what the other priests believed, Meddhi-Lan was certain that this particular Shiva was indeed a boy, no matter what his body seemed. Meddhi-Lan knew it in his heart to be the truth.

  Meddhi-Lan closed his eyes and made a silent soul-promise to forever protect the new king of Deius. Though, for Meddhi-Lan, The Bodanya would always be known, first and foremost, as his most beloved boy named Ayn.

  Chapter 2: The Influence of Meddhi-Lan

  Over the past forty years, Meddhi-Lan had watched his planet become the enemy, like a serpent swallowing its own tail. Split in two halves, the rejected followers of science, now in exile, fought against the believers of the Gods of Un-Ahm, or The Un, as it was more commonly called. Meddhi-Lan believed that Deius had gone from being a planet that was once the most powerful in the galaxy to a weak and dying planet with inhabitants who do nothing but chant and pray. As much as he believed in the power of prayer, he did not think it replaced scientific advancement. He had hoped the queen of his planet, Amya, might somehow reconcile and heal their people, but that seemed an impossible feat.

  Unlike his fellow priests, he did not watch his planet’s demise without emotion and was unable to remain detached when he heard of the rampant poverty and sickness that plagued his planet. Dedicated to making a difference, Meddhi-Lan spent most of his life learning the ancient ways of The Dei. He hoped that doing so would help him become truly aware and prepare him for when Adin would inevitably be reincarnated.

  As a child, Meddhi-Lan had seen the unrest of his people first-hand during The Great Civil War. He had witnessed his father killed at the hands of science followers, or as they were more commonly known, The Tah. It was his violent childhood that prepared Meddhi-Lan to become the strongest and noblest man within the council of The Dei. It was also his dedication and pride that made him such a respected leader among his fellow priests.