The First Seal by Jared Zakarian

Author:Jared Zakarian [Zakarian, Jared]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Jared A. Zakarian
Published: 2019-11-25T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 16

The Storm

An anchor will be needed in the raging storm as waves grow and the winds howl.

The Ikalreev Prophecies 22:19

Minor attacks had begun against the doors of Lesley. Claw marks littered the giant gate’s exterior. A few stones from the outer wall were missing from where demons had tried to climb, now strewn across the farms beyond Lesley’s gate. Hundreds of soldiers stood watch on the walls, waiting for the next assault. Decaying demon bodies plagued the grounds beyond the outer wall, staining the dirt with their black blood and rendering barren any tainted ground.

A soldier atop the outer gate shouted, “Someone is approaching! Eyes up! Arrows at the ready!”

The lone hooded figure walked toward the gate. He wore a black cloak intricately woven with a unique red pattern. His walk was unsteady, and his head was down.

One soldier eyed the shrouded figure and shouted to his commanding officer, “It is a Shadow Guardian! I see the crest!”

The soldier was correct as there was a small crest atop his hood at forehead height.

The commanding officer shouted down to his men below, “Open the gates!”

The massive outer doors creaked and groaned as they opened.

The commanding officer recognized the colors on the guardian’s clothing and shouted to his men, “Make way for the Shadow Guardian! Give a wide path!” He turned to a subordinate and said, “Go inform General Baskla.”

The subordinate ran off.

The Shadow Guardian entered the gates, and the tall doors closed behind him. The guardian did not stop, walking up the main road toward the castle. Soldiers glanced at him from afar and kept their hands on their hilts. The lone guardian’s hood turned toward a nearby group of soldiers, and the lot of them jumped back when they saw the glowing white eyes beneath the hood.

One soldier spoke out of the corner of his mouth in a hushed tone. “I am not sure about this one. Saalkain is scary enough.”

Another soldier whispered, “Are they all like that?”

The enshrouded figure shifted his gaze forward again, missing the rest of the conversation. He walked through the open inner gate and entered the forge and trade district of Lesley.

Faolan stopped as he looked around. The city looked different to him. There used to be a group of shops farther up the path and off to his left that had been destroyed. They had been replaced with a small watchtower amid the debris. A dozen archers stood atop its stand. It was nowhere near high enough to see over the wall. Faolan looked to his right and saw a heavy ballista resting where a forge used to exist. The ballista was loaded and pointed toward the inner gateway.

Faolan heard something bouncing toward him. He glanced forward and spotted a bouncing green ball. It rolled to a stop in front of his feet. Then, unexpectedly, a small being ran into him: a girl, maybe seven years old.

“Excuse me,” the human girl said. “I did not mean to.”

The girl grabbed her ball, looked up

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.