The Keeper of the Crystal Blade: A Coming of Age Fantasy Series (Winterthorn Saga Book 3) by Nathan Taylor

Author:Nathan Taylor [Taylor, Nathan]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Magpie Drive Press
Published: 2024-08-24T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter 23

Samantha

A commotion outside woke Samantha from an uneasy slumber. She lay in a heap on an unwashed wooden floor. Iron shackles bound her wrists and ankles; enormous bolts fixed the cold chains to the top of her cage. Laroa’s ruins were three days behind them. Or was it four? Samantha had no way of knowing. Time had no meaning in her cell; it blended together in a mix of pain and hunger.

Someone arrived at the door. Instinctively, Samantha retreated to the corner. Keys jingled in the lock, and lantern light washed in. Rough hands seized her. Samantha didn’t fight. How could she? Her fingers were gone, her right eye blinded, her spirit broken.

Unseen figures dragged her up the staircase to the balcony of the traveling court. Another door opened to blinding sunlight. Samantha squeezed her eye closed while someone bolted her chains to the floor. She could hear Rasporvin speaking to somebody. When she raised her head, Rasporvin watched her from a wooden throne. He wore a silver crown and a satisfied smile. Bile rose in Samantha’s throat at the sight of him.

Samantha turned away. They were perched on the edge of a rise. On her left, Odacre’s mountain ranges rose like a stone wall. Less than a mile below them, a sprawling riverside town was coming to life. A sea of fog blanketed the streets, hiding the traffic, but not the sounds of engines. The tops of buildings protruded like islands. The sun kissed the rooftops, painting them gold. It was beautiful. The sight made Samantha feel ill.

A line of buses broke free of the mist, heading west along the highway and shrank into the distance. At least some of them will get away.

“The rat arrives at last,” Rasporvin said. “Come, as promised, to watch another nest burn.” He leaned forward and spat on her. “Reports estimate this is home to ten-thousand southern vermin.” Rasporvin smiled. “Knightmaster Korvan says it will take him only ten minutes.”

Samantha wanted to cry, to scream, to beg. But she wouldn't. Not today. She had done all three in Laroa, to no avail. Rasporvin enjoyed her misery. She would not give him the pleasure. Not again.

“I thought that too easy,” Rasporvin went on. He spoke as if butchering thousands of innocent people was as normal as observing the weather. “I challenged him to destroy it in half of that.” He took her chin in his oily fingers. “We will watch together and see how he fares.”

The Grand Steward pushed her face away, and the chains rattled as Samantha fell against them. Rasporvin stood as the travelling court turned on the spot. Samantha’s heart galloped in her chest as the sight below her registered.

A thousand drevsmok crouched at the ready. A thousand Knights waited in green armor. At the front, Korvan removed his helmet. His ivory hair fanned over his shoulder plate. He raised a fist in the air. A terrible silence hung over them.

“No,” Samantha groaned. “These aren’t your enemies.” Every word burned against her parched throat.

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