Shadow of the Void by Nathan Garrison

Author:Nathan Garrison
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: HarperCollins Publishers
Published: 2016-04-19T19:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 12

Mevon crouched behind the boulder, smiling at the tufts of grass poking up through the snow. In the last few days, the plateau had begun to dip. There were places he and Draevenus had simply slid down for hundreds or even thousands of paces. Even so, signs of life remained rare.

Until now.

The crunch of hooves across the cold slush brought his attention forward. Mevon quivered in anticipation. He didn’t know if that was a good thing or not. Despite all his efforts to abstain, he still grew excited at the prospect of violence, even that not directed at men. Maybe he’d been wrong about himself. Maybe letting off steam was the last thing he needed. Maybe he’d been the biggest fool in the world to think he could change.

Maybe he was just really, really hungry.

Another crunch, and now the ram’s head edged into view from behind an oblong stone, nose scuffing around in the snow to get to the grass trapped below. Mevon caressed his dagger hilts, coiling to pounce.

A family of dark birds screeched into the air across the field. The ram turned towards it, startled. But only for a moment. It bleated once, then retreated in great, four-legged hops that took it away from his position with incredible speed.

Seeing his next meal escaping, Mevon charged after it.

He leapt forward, feet launching his body off boulder after boulder, staying high to keep an eye on his prey. His blades stayed sheathed, for now. The ram had not fled directly away from him, and he caught up to it in a dozen beats. He aimed for the creature’s back and surged forward, ready to wrestle it to the ground.

The very instant before his hands were to meet the beast’s neck, however, something crashed into him from the side. The breath was knocked from his lungs. He tumbled from the impact, rolling and kicking up gouts of snow.

He righted himself a moment later, fighting the storm that threatened to break within him.

Draevenus lay sprawled nearby. He held a hand to his head and groaned.

“Are you all right?” Mevon asked.

“Ruul’s light, Mevon. I’d rather dive headfirst into a quarry than run into you again. What are you made of anyway? Steel?”

“A man of steel. Now there’s a thought.” He reached down, clasping hands with the assassin, and pulled him to his feet. “Better?”

“I will be in a mark or so. Did you see where the abyss-taken beast got to?”

“No. And we’d be skinning and butchering it now if you hadn’t interfered. What was that all about anyway?”

Draevenus shrugged. “Same as you, I guess. Our plan was ruined by those birds, so I just took off after it, quick as I could. It was just bad luck that we reached it at the same moment.”

“True. But that doesn’t make me any less hungry.”

“It can’t have gotten far.” Draevenus squinted, peering into the distance. “How ’bout a little wager?”

Mevon arched an eyebrow. “Name the terms.”

“Simple. First to catch it gets to divvy up the portions.

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