(eng) Pauline Creeden - Chronicles of Steele 01 by Raven Episode One

Author:Raven Episode One [One, Raven Episode]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Fear is not the enemy.

The enemy’s fear is a great weapon. It will cause him to make poor decisions.

One's fear will do the same unless it is embraced.

If fear is vanquished, it will quicken one's senses and increase strength.

SIX. AND RAVEN only had two weapons. She gritted her teeth and faced the oncoming storm. A breeze picked up and rustled the leaves above her head, causing their golds and oranges to scatter around them like feathers in a childhood pillow fight. She considered hiding in the shadows, but knew it would be nearly impossible to hide the boy and his monstrous dog. The odds were not in her favor, but neither were they impossible. She had no choice but to stand her ground. Without turning her head, she said to the boy, “Run.”

Silver moonlight shined off the brass metal horses as they rounded the bend. The white of the riders’ shirts stated that without question they were Duke’s Guard. The Great Dane let out a slow whine.

He didn’t run? Raven prepared to shout at the boy, but he lay on the ground convulsing and foaming at the mouth. The dog paced around him in a circle, whining. Her heart dropped in her stomach. He’d acted like a normal kid the whole time, and she’d forgotten he’d had a problem. The metal horses stopped, gears within growing to a loud screech. Her eyes darted between the boy and the metal horses.

Steam broke through the polished brass of the horses’ joints and swallowed the guard in a cloud. Men screamed and jumped from the shrieking machines. Billows of vapor rose, sizzling off the brass. It filled the air with the smell of burning grease.

The closest of the horses fell over stiff and unmoving. Raven was flash-blinded as another exploded in a bright blaze and a shower of sparks rained down on the dirt road. The guard scrambled from the chaotic metal fury. But four brass automatons remained in a chaotic stampede toward Raven and the boy.

Her heart beat a rhythm faster than she’d ever felt. If it were a flesh horse rushing at them, she could hope to spook it or shoot it with her crossbow in hopes of making it veer. But the metal horses had no fear, no mind, made no decisions.

Forgetting her wounded arm, she lifted the boy and held him to her chest. She removed the crossbow and aimed it in the direction of the horses. Three horses ran abreast directly for her, unavoidable. The fourth ran behind the others. She pulled the trigger and buried the diamond tipped crossbow bolt in the middle one’s brass knee joint. It collapsed, sliding across the ground and tripping the horse behind it in a tangle of legs that continued to run aimlessly in the air.

The remaining two horses ran within inches of either side of Raven. If she had reached out with both arms, her fingertips would have brushed their metal sides. Heat and steam sprayed them as the two metal horses passed.

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