Legacy of Bones: A Tale of Bone and Steel - One by Kirk Dougal

Author:Kirk Dougal [Dougal, Kirk]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Diamond Seven
Published: 2020-02-24T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 18

The Farmer's Sickle was the last phase of the moon before it began to fill out again to its fullest. The barest amount of moonlight shone from the sliver hanging in the dark sky, even the stars choosing to stay away this evening. The night fell so dark that a sparse stand of trees outside the town threw inky shadows on the ground. Dax sat in one of these black pools.

He remained a motionless figure only five paces from a Crimson Guard on the outer watch line. His gaze swept the area, studying the troops, just as he had every night since catching up to the company west of Charlser.

It had taken ten days of living in the saddle, ten days of trailing the soldiers during the day, and testing their defenses at night. During the entire time, Dax had only caught one brief glimpse of Keely. On the second night, he had hidden at just the correct angle to see her descend from the covered cage and enter a tent. But that one quick flash had kept him on his feet with little rest, waiting for the opportunity to steal her away. So far, the moment had eluded him.

That dilemma puzzled Dax. Yes, the group was of company strength, counting nine score of men, but it was not the number that had him shaking his head late at night. The little experience he had in the past with the Crimson Guard revealed the officers to be lenient about letting the soldiers have their way with nearby townspeople, carousing with the women, fighting with the men, and generally taking whatever they could carry. But this captain had not allowed his men to enter the villages they passed, even when they camped within a stone's throw of a small town as they did tonight.

Their guard duty was just as strange. A full squad stood guard on Keely's tent each evening. Four more squads walked posts on the outer perimeter of the camp. This group of five rotated with two other five-squad crews for three separate watches during the night. The rotation kept the sentries at maximum alertness, not allowing Dax to sneak into camp when they grew tired or sloppy. Even more confusing, Keely appeared to be the only prisoner in the camp, making the number of guards feel excessive. He knew there must be some significance to the amount of watchfulness, but he had never seen anything like it before.

The only good fortune he stumbled across so far was the pace of the journey. A company could not travel as fast as a squad or platoon, even with the discipline of this group of Crimson Guards. It had taken two or three days longer to cross Galadon than he expected. But this small amount of luck was about to desert him. Sometime late the next afternoon, the company would reach the Wall of Purley and cross into Tralain. Once inside that immense barrier, as tall as five men and

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