Paladin by Slater Sally

Author:Slater, Sally [Slater, Sally]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, azw
ISBN: 9780989463317
Publisher: Perfect Analogy Publishing
Published: 2015-05-13T14:00:00+00:00

Outside the inn, Pirama was as silent as when they had first arrived, but the air seemed thicker, as if a storm were brewing. The sharp-ridged peaks of the mountain cloaked the city in a dark, uneven pall. A winged creature flew overhead, too far above to make out. Tristan shot it down with the bow he had slung over his shoulder. It fell to the ground in a small back clump. Braeden prodded the creature with his boot. Just a bat. They were all too tense, even he.

Shutting his eyes, Braeden released the first mental shield that kept the demons out of his mind. He felt their tug at the edges. “They’re close,” he said, ignoring the rush of blood in his ears. “Less than a quarter mile.”

“No point waiting around to be ambushed,” Tristan said. “You lead, and we’ll follow.”

Braeden drew a knife and sliced into his skin, letting the thrall of the demons carry him. Their savagery lured him in like a fish, and he took the bait, following the line back to the source. He walked with eyes closed, as if under a compulsion, but he held on to the part of him that was human and kept it safe.

“Where are we?” Sam asked when Braeden’s feet came to a halt.

Braeden opened his eyes. He had led them into the mountains, to the top of a narrow pass between two near-vertical rocky faces. The ground was covered with layers of stones and pebbles, and the chalky path beneath them was worn and well-traversed. The pass glimmered with flecks of silver and gold under the light of the half-moon.

In the distance, a bell rang, its peel spelling out a warning. “They’re here,” Braeden said.

“Shite,” Tristan cursed, his head swinging from right to left. “Where are they?”

Braeden put his finger to his lips. “Listen, and you’ll hear them.” Claws scuttled and scraped on rock, close enough now that anyone could register the sound. Something rattled and buzzed, and he could pick up a faint humming.

“I hear them, but I can’t see a thing,” Tristan said between clenched teeth. “If we stay here, we’re doomed. We won’t be able to attack till they’re too close for comfort.”

“How many of them are there? Can you tell, Braeden?” Sam asked, squinting into the dark.

“More than ten and less than a hundred, but more exact than that I can’t say. The first of them are a short distance away now.”

“You can see in this light?” Tristan asked.

Braeden tapped the corner of his eye. “One of their few benefits.”

“Convenient for you,” Tristan said, “but Sam and I are handicapped in the dark. We’ll need to draw them out of the pass if we’re to stand any chance of winning.”

“That might be problematic,” Braeden said. “They’re coming in from both sides.”

“How is that possible?” Sam asked with a hint of nervousness. “How could they have gotten behind us?”

Braeden pointed up. Three oversized worms, with spiked tails and shovel-shaped heads, slinked down the sides of the mountain from above, leaving behind a slimy secretion that glowed a faint green in the dark.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.