Haven: Revenge of the Viper Read Online Free PDF

with the keys to all four portals.” Her eyes moved around the room as the Majesty leaders looked on in disbelief.
    “But you said that the other three were destroyed! You said there was only one that remained, and it was no longer functional,” Elessar said.
    “You don’t understand. It was not safe to keep the keys here. It was not safe for any of us,” Bellisoria pleaded.
    “But that was a decision that should have been made by the Majesty!” said Kellen.
    “No!” she said abruptly. “It was a decision I had to make alone. Only I know where the other portals lead. They lead to worlds far worse than we can imagine. They are inhabited by monstrous fiends capable of unspeakable evil and destruction like nothing we have ever seen before. No, I could not leave it up to the Majesty to vote. It was my burden to bear, it was my decision to make, and I did.”
    “What did you do, Bellisoria?” Valteen interjected. His voice was cold and his glare unrelenting.
    Bellisoria swallowed hard and continued her story.
    “After the death of Rylan Dalcome, we approached Alisa with the opportunity to travel to Earth as a sleeper agent. It would also provide a new start for her and her family. It was obvious, considering her vital role in the downfall of Cyrus Kan’s army, that she and her children would be a target for future attacks. At that time, we explained to her that she had only one mission, and that was to hide and protect the portal keys. She left with her children and the eleven portal keys.”
    "Eleven? Why eleven? That seems like an odd number,” Tobias prodded. He was sitting up straight now, his interest peeked.
    Bellisoria turned to Tobias, knowing what his true intentions were. He was like the rest of Realm leaders, with the exception of the Witches and perhaps the Elves, whom she trusted. All the others wanted the gate keys for themselves. They wanted the opportunity to do what Bellisoria had done, to discover an uninhabited world and rule it for themselves. But Bellisoria could not let that happen. She had been to both the Air and Fire worlds and she had barely made it back alive. Haven, the Water world, and Earth were the only two of the elemental planets safe enough to colonize.
    “Each portal creates a time rift that requires three keys to operate it; one to travel through, and two to return,” she explained.
    “So, where is the missing key? There should be twelve,” Alexandria said.
    “The last key is safe. We use it to send scrolls to Earth though the portal; this is how we communicate with Alisa. It is not possible to send a scroll to another planet without opening a portal.”
    Valteen was pacing back and forth as he listened to Bellisoria intently. Then he stopped and turned to the Witch.
    “So, what has our sleeper agent been up to for the last thirteen years?” he asked. His tone oozed with arrogance. Bellisoria’s glare returned to Valteen. She hated the self-righteous Vampire, and hated him even more for taking pleasure at her expense.
    “She and her family are well,” she said indignantly. “She has settled into a normal human life. Her days of the Majesty are all but over.”
    “And the keys—what of the keys?” asked Tobias.
    “They are safe, as safe as they have been for thirteen long years,” Bellisoria replied.
    “This is an outrage! You have lied to us, Bellisoria, and you have lied to the Realms!” Cantor said. His accusation cut deeply, but Bellisoria knew it was true. Cantor was right. She had lied, but there had been no other way.
    “Cantor, you must understand it was for our own good. I did it to protect us,” she said, trying desperately to make her point.
    “No, it was good for you, the Witches and your select few, but not for us!” he replied. “You wanted the other worlds for yourself as you did with Haven!”
    “That is not true! I brought you here!” she exclaimed.
    “You brought us here to rule over us!”
    He turned to his second-in-command. “Come,”