Swords Against the Night (The Lost Book 4) by Peter Nealen

Author:Peter Nealen [Nealen, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: WarGate Books
Published: 2022-07-23T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter 19

The sun was going down behind the ridge to our rear when I saw movement in the trees.

I didn’t stop my horse, though I did slow down and key my radio. “This is One. Movement right.”

“I see it.” Gunny left it that. There wasn’t much more we could do until or unless whoever or whatever it was gave us an opening.

It was hard to say what I was looking at. It wasn’t one of the Avur scouts. The overwatch team had spotted them twice, but after what had happened to the first team, they weren’t eager to cross swords with us again. They’d faded as soon as they’d seen us. Even the overwatch team, Bailey’s the first time and Gurke’s the second, hadn’t been able to catch them. It was possible that one of the Avur shamans had gotten word to them about what had happened, but it was just as likely that they’d heard the gunshots and the whistle, and they knew that nobody had come down the mountain afterward. We’d left our captured tribesman tied to a tree behind us. He’d get loose eventually, but we’d be long gone by then.

No, this wasn’t one of the Avur scouts. In fact, I didn’t think it was human at all.

It was next to impossible to get a clear look at it, even though it didn’t seem to be really trying to hide. It reminded me of a creature that had stalked Rodeffer and me in the north, the day after we’d arrived through the mists and landed on the hostile shores of the Land of Ice and Monsters. It was blurry, as if it wasn’t quite there, or was somehow out of focus. When it didn’t move, I almost couldn’t see it at all.

I’d driven the thing in the north off by pointing my weapon at it. I wasn’t sure if I could have actually hurt it, but it had worked, somehow. Maybe I’d bluffed just enough.

But when I lifted my rifle this time, I couldn’t see it at all.

“Damn thing’s playing hide and seek.”

“I see it.” Mathghaman had ridden up next to me, and I didn’t doubt he’d heard my muttered imprecation. His steely gray eyes were fixed on where I’d last seen that weird, blurry figure, but I still couldn’t see anything there. Unless… When I concentrated, I thought I could see the faint gleam of yellow eyes staring out of the murk and the foliage.

“What is it?” I kept my voice low, even though I was sure that thing could probably hear me, anyway.

“Something one of their shamans summoned.” He was still watching it, which made it that much more eerie that I couldn’t see it at all. “More fool they.” He twisted in his saddle, made eye contact with Diarmodh, and jerked his head toward the trees. The younger Tuacha warrior nodded, swung off his horse’s back, and vanished into the woods.

A moment later, a horrific shriek went up somewhere in the trees. It was enough to make my ears hurt and raise gooseflesh on my arms.

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