Perception Check (The Mages of Velmyra Saga Book 1) by Astrid Knight

Author:Astrid Knight [Knight, Astrid]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2022-05-23T16:00:00+00:00

As the path in the dead forest narrows, Melandrich hands out weapons.

The wood is a knotted mess of intertwining roots and branches, curling into each other in such a cacophonous pile that I can’t tell what’s coming from the trees and what’s coming from the ground. There is no rhyme or reason to the overgrowth, it seems. Except for, of course, the pathway through the gnarled wood. There is a distinct earthen path straight through the middle of the forest for the few miles that we walk. Each out-of-control branch seems to know that the trail is off limits, like the forest is creating a Red Sea of sorts straight down its center. But while it started wide enough for us to walk down in rows of two or three, it now narrows, so much so that we can only fit single file.

As soon as he recognizes this, Melandrich stops us, pulling out his Boundless Satchel and distributing the means to defend ourselves. We all get our picks—Eddie has opted for a sword (of course), and I can tell he hasn’t had any practice with it since we’ve been out here, the blade wavering in his hand as he struggles to hold it upright in front of him. Kai has gone for a hand crossbow, one that looks more deadly in their grip given the size of it compared to their small frame. The massive club that Gren had wielded back in Castle’s Edge is returned to her, a wide smile exposing her uneven, splotchy teeth spreading across her face as she grips it in hand. Jackson takes his daggers unenthusiastically, shoving them with no care into his belt.

Adrian and I get Residuum. Adrian perks up as the stones are set into his hands, inspecting each crystal by holding it up to the waning sunlight. He’s been given a variety of types, mostly Heavenly and Earthen. A few Infernal stones have made it into the mix, though Adrian doesn’t take as much care with them as he does some of the other stones, hastily throwing them in his pocket without examining them too closely.

When Melandrich gets to me, he asks what type I prefer. I initially say Earthen, but Adrian doesn’t even look up from the inspection of his stones while saying, “Give her some Heavenly too.”

I start to protest, but Melandrich gives me a few of the lavender-colored stones anyway, moving on to check on the rest of the group before I can refuse. Panicked, I look over at Adrian. “I haven’t used Heavenly yet,” I say. “I’ve barely used Earthen.”

“It’s the same concept,” he says, shoving the remainder of his stones in his pocket. Putting a hand on my shoulder, he grins at me. “You’ve been getting the hang of it quickly. You got this.”

“I could electrocute someone.”

“That’s the point, isn’t it?” He pats me on the shoulder as Melandrich calls for us to move forward down the path. “Just make sure it’s none of us.”

The path winds, narrowing and darkening as we maneuver through the twisting branches.

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.