Veil of Deception



Veil of Deception is the second book in the Chronicles of the Chosen. It chronicles the continuing adventures of Morgan Lafayette and her friends. It was published by BookLocker on December 15, 2011, and the cover art is attributed to Del Lanhart.

Dedication

 * "To Sarah and Mike, for pushing me to do more (Even when I was pusing back!)"

It stands to reason that the "Sarah" and "Mike" mentioned in the dedication for this book are the same as the "Sarah and Mike" mentioned in Sphere of Power.

Book Description
Morgan Lafayette returns, but this time she is missing her faithfil sidekick Tilson.

The fey on Zea Island have fallen victim to a mysterious illness and now Morgan has to travel even further than she had ever expected to find a cure and save her friends.

From the bottom of the ocean to a magical land far above the treetops, Morgan faces more danger, and more excitement, than ever before

Chapter 1: Lost and Found

 * "Inside, the building was dark and forbidding. No light penetrated the solid stone walls, and the air was thick and heavy with the musty odor of time. The muted noise of small rodents echoed through the halls, and the heavy walls felt as though they were closing in around the man as he walked among them."

The opening chapter of this book is a teaser, activities that are happening outside the knowledge of the main cast of characters. Here, an unnamed person struggles to make his way through thick brush towards a crumbling ruin, inside of which are a guardian and a book of magical spells.

Due to the description given of the topical character in this chapter, the thief can be assumed to be Leander, the antagonist from Sphere of Power. However, nowhere in the rest of the book is this confirmed.

Chapter 2: Etheral Fields

 * "A long snout, with a whiskered black nose and large, sad eyes faced her. Instead of the small ears of a squirrel, this animal had larger, canine ears that were cocked forward. Except for the size and the fact that the head was attached to the body of a squirrel, Morgan could have sworn that the creature in the tree had been a wolf."

Morgan Lafayette has been back in the human world after the end of Sphere of Power, and here she is seen in class. A peri comes to fetch her to meet with the council, as Tilson is still missing. Liore is sent to take Morgan's stead, and Morgan heads out to Zea Island.

When she arrives, there is something unusual going on and all of the gathered fey are acting strangely, but before she is able to investiagte the source of their behavior, Corran pulls her aside and informs her that she is needed at Magicgleam's lair. The ether that was released from the spheres in the previous book has caused some disruption in the local wildlife, and Morgan is needed to transport the trapped creatures to safety outside the unstable magic zone.

Chapter 3: Infection

 * "His hand hung limply in the air halfway between himself and Morgan, shaking like treetops in a storm. he looked at his hand in surprise for just a moment before it fell limply at his side. He widened his eyes at the gathering of fey, surprise clearly apparent before he squeezed them shut again, tightening his face as though in a tremendous amount of pain. Like one of the falling leaves from the trees around tem, he slumped face down on the ground."

Morgan returns to Zea Island, angry at Corran for misleading her about the dangers she would face in the Etheral Field. As soon as she arrives, however, Corran falls victim to the same mysterious illness that has plagued the rest of the fey.

Many of the fey believe that Leander was responsible for the illness, for he was spotted on Zea Island shortly before the first of the fey fell ill. Morgan decides to confront Leander and force him to tell her what was causing the sickness, and to find a cure, if there is one.

Chapter 4: Confrontation

 * "The explosion was deafening, pushing her back across the grass until she slammed into a tree. Reeling from both the blast and the pain that cascaded from the top of her head down through her body, she saw that the blast had thrown Leander backwards, too, but she couldn't see where he had landed."

Morgan, along with Vouivre, heads out to confront Leander and demand answers to the fey's illness. When she encounters him, he refuses to tell her why he had attacked the Council, but he shows her a rod that he claims will cure all of them. He offers to give the rod to her in return for her delivering Corran to him.

Morgan refuses the offer and tries to take the rod by force, but Leander's magic proves too powerful for her. While she is reeling beneath a tree, he seems to make his escape.

Tilson appears at the same time, trying to assist Morgan while she is injured. The pair of them discover that while they managed to maintain control of the rod, it had shattered during the battle.

While they wait for Vouivre's arrival, Tilson spots Leander. Morgan sets out after him, only to discover that it was an illusion - a magical trap that exploded as soon as Morgan was close.

Chapter 5: Sticks and Stones

 * Tilson looked up at her defiantly. "You needed me, too, you know. If I hadn't been there to rescue you in the woods, who knows how long it would have been before anyone found you."

Morgan wakes back on Zea Island, and discovers that her wounds have been treated. Arien has brought in another apotharni named Cristin to help treat the sick fey. She explains to the pair of apotharni that she retrieved the rod from Leander, but when she shows them the broken pieces they explain that, because it is broken, it may no longer work.

They finally determine that the stone was the important piece of the rod, as it was a cuélebre stone, a magical item capable of healing almost any ailment. Because the stone was broken, they need to get a new one. Cristin believes that a cuélebre lives in the Hidden Kingdom; the elder from his village had been researching on it. He offers to return to his village to discover more about where the Hidden Kingdom can be found.

Chapter 6: Jungle

 * "Waiting a couple days isn't going to make that much of a difference to me, but they," she pointed to where the sick fey still lay sleeping, "may not have enough time left for me to wait."

Morgan, Tilson, and Vouivre head out in search of the Hidden Kingdom, against the advice of Arien, who wants her to heal some more before heating out into danger again.

Vouivre and Tilson accompany Morgan into the Jungle, where they move through fantastic places and see strange new plants and flowers before Vouive shows them the entrance to the Hidden Kingdom. He can't go through the gate himself, so he waits in the jungle while Morgan and Tilson go ahead.

Chapter 7: Scramble

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Chapter 8: Cuélebre

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Chapter 9: Leander's Next Move

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Chapter 10: Ceara Temple

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Chapter 11: Liore's Story

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Chapter 12: Gnomish Machinations

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Chapter 13: Final Farewell

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Chapter 14: Intrusion

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Chapter 15: Ameil Bas-Grann

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Chapter 16: Truth and Secrets

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Chapter 17: Aftermath

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