A Curse of Mist and Shadows (Shadows Across the Ages Book 1) by Laura Maybrooke

Author:Laura Maybrooke [Maybrooke, Laura]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Laura Maybrooke
Published: 2023-10-09T16:00:00+00:00

---

The following morning, after a few miles on the road, they reached the ruins of what had once been Zaragden, the town closest to Vyronh on the capital’s north side. Located twenty-two miles northwest of Vyronh, it was a distance Garth could have reached by himself within a day even on foot had he pushed himself hard enough. Now, however, the circumstances had stretched it so that it was already the fourth morning of travel, and Dwaloth still lay almost one hundred and thirty miles away.

Like in Vyronh, scorched, crumbling buildings dominated the townscape, with only a few walls still standing. There was a thick layer of ash on the ground, but something about the place was off. Garth studied the charred remains of Zaragden with a critical eye, noticing that there were no bodies. He had seen firsthand the devastation the dragons’ breath could wreak, and he knew the dead should have littered the streets of this town. Instead, there was only an eerie silence.

“Something is wrong here, and I don’t mean the fire.”

Lyviana, who had been walking beside him with her head bowed, looked up at the sound of his voice. “What do you mean?”

“There should be bodies everywhere,” Garth said, gesturing at the ruined town around them. “But there’s nothing.”

The princess frowned. “You’re right. Does that mean they all escaped before the dragons could get them?”

“That is a possibility—but an unlikely one.” His face hardened. “No, I’ve seen this before.”

“What do you mean?”

“Mist,” he said, lowering his voice so as not to alarm the others. “It is a phenomenon of some sort that can disintegrate all life. Something unnatural, like a forbidden art. Or a curse, perhaps, if you will.”

Lyviana paled. “Are you sure?”

Garth nodded. “Yes. You don’t forget something like that.” His heart clenched as he remembered that day. He still couldn’t believe Marron and Aisha were gone.

Her eyes widened. “You mean... you’ve seen it?”

He clenched his hands into fists. “I have. Here in Sraeyn. I will tell you more once we make camp.”

The princess was silent for a moment, digesting his words. “But why? What would be the point of killing everyone like that?”

“I don’t know. But whatever the reason, we need to get out of here as quickly as possible. This place feels all wrong.”

“I agree, but... what about supplies? If the people just vanished, it is possible we might find a few untouched cellars.”

The words gave Garth pause. Lyviana was right, of course: if they were going to continue their journey, they would need supplies. They were already running low on food and water, and if they didn’t find more soon, they would either starve or die of thirst.

“You’re right,” he said, relenting. “Let’s have a look.”

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.