The Restored King by Richard Fierce

Author:Richard Fierce
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Dragonfire Press

“The influence of what we say pales in comparison to our actions.”

—Melchiades

CHAPTER NINE

It was nearing noon when they reached the rolling hills that marked Ravencliffe’s borders. Aramis reined in his horse, jerking on the bit so hard that the animal grunted. Ahead, the smoke of the burning town hung in a thick haze and some of the buildings were still aflame. Aramis watched the thatched roof of one of the buildings give way in a shower of sparks. A few feet away, a copse of oddly swaying branches caught his attention. As the smoke swirled, the truth became clear. The trees were gibbets, and a dozen bodies hung from their branches.

His anger burned as hot as the flames around him. He stood in his stirrups and surveyed the rest of the town. Spotting a large gathering of people, he nudged his horse in their direction. As he got nearer, he counted four guards. Two were standing idle, while the other two were harassing people trying to pass. A long line of people stretched down the road, all of them trying to flee somewhere safer. The guards were extorting money, goods and even livestock as passage fees.

A few people were allowed to pass through the blockade at the cost of all the money they had on them. The guard stopped a woman with two small children.

“Please,” she begged. “I don’t have anything to pay with. I’ve lost everything.” Behind her, the ill-clad children clutched at her and huddled together.

“I don’t believe you, wench! Now pay the fee.”

“That or you can trade one of the children,” the other guard said. “I like children,” he added with a leer. He reached toward one of them and the woman screamed.

“Get away from them,” Aramis said. He summoned his blade and the air hissed as it formed. The crowd gasped and backed away from the blockade.

The guard who had reached for the child turned to face him. “Well, well. A rogue on a horse. Likely stolen, too. Mind your business, fool.”

“Get away from them,” Aramis repeated. He heard the air hiss behind him as Mel summoned his own blade. He moved his horse forward until he was between the guards and the helpless woman.

The guard drew his sword. “This is none of your business.” The other guard drew his blade as well, but the two standing idle only had their hands on their pommels.

“I’ve just made it my business,” Aramis said. “I suggest you and your fellows remove this blockade and get back to the castle.”

“What are you going to do?” The guard sneered at him. “You’re outnumbered.”

“Is that so?” Aramis asked as he summoned his armor. The black metal formed around him and it felt different this time, stronger, more powerful. The guard exchanged uncertain glances with his fellow and then swallowed hard.

“You’ll have to kill us all,” he said. The other two guards unsheathed their swords and advanced toward him.

“With pleasure,” Aramis said. His ebony blade glinted in the sun as he brought it down hard.

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.