Bookworm by Christopher Nuttall

Author:Christopher Nuttall [Nuttall, Christopher]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Science Fiction, Fantasy
ISBN: 9781908168221
Google: uXXjkgEACAAJ
Amazon: B00B2GBYWE
Publisher: Elsewhen Press
Published: 2013-01-17T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-One

Dread stood there, his black cloak swirling around him.

Elaine thought, as pain trickled away from her body, that she’d never seen anything more magnificent. Dread held his staff upright in front of him, staring directly at the torturer and his assistants. Just as he was, he was the most dangerous person in the room and they all knew it. Behind him, peeking through the door, her eyes opening wide with horror as she saw the marks on Elaine’s body, was Princess Sacharissa. Elaine couldn’t even begin to imagine what she was doing there.

Dread lifted a finger and tossed a wave of force at the torturer, knocking him back into the wall. As if it had been a signal, the first of the assistants charged directly at Dread, fists whirling as if he thought he could beat an Inquisitor in a fistfight. Dread didn’t give him a chance to find out; he eyed his opponent, who slowly came to a halt and froze in place. Dread stepped forward as soon as ice had covered the assistant and kicked him in the groin. Chunks of frozen flesh crashed down everywhere.

The second assistant had some magic. He made a series of gestures with his hand and needles – hot needles of inquiry, according to the knowledge in Elaine’s head – shot off the table and lunged towards Dread. The Inquisitor held up his staff and the needles froze in mid-air, before turning and racing back towards the second assistant. He turned to run, too late; the needles slammed into his back and burned through his body. Hexed to produce incredible pain in their victims, they tore through him and blew him screaming into the next world.

Dread ran forward as the chains suddenly tightened around Elaine’s hands, threatening to crush her wrists. He cast a complex spell that shattered the iron chains, showering Elaine with dust as she collapsed in a heap. Her entire body hurt, pain surging through every last part of her mind. Dread caught her before she hit the ground and cast a second spell on her. This one started to push the pain into a corner of her mind. It still hurt, but at least she could think clearly.

She caught Dread in her arms and gave him a kiss, driven by relief and a strange emotion she couldn’t quite identify. He gently pushed her away and held out a black robe, looking away as Elaine donned it and stumbled to her feet. Princess Sacharissa held out a hand and Elaine took it gratefully as Dread walked over to the torturer.

“Dead,” he said. “It looks to be another curse and...”

The crystal ball exploded with a shattering crash. “They’ll be coming after us,” Princess Sacharissa said, quickly. “My father’s huntsmen will be seeking us...”

“Then we’d better get out of here,” Dread said. He pulled Elaine’s wand out of his robe and passed it to her. “Elaine; can you walk?”

“I think so,” Elaine stammered. After everything – the summoning, the stunning, the torture – she felt faint and wanted to collapse.

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