Power Forged by Eric T. Knight

Author:Eric T. Knight [Knight, Eric T.]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2019-02-07T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter 26

“Well, that’s strange,” Lukas said. “What’s going on?”

They had just come to the crest of a low rise. There in the distance was Qarath. But instead of the siege they were expecting, they saw the Samkaran army marching through the open gates into the city.

“Did the city fall already?” Gage asked.

“No way those walls fell that fast, not without siege engines,” Strout declared. “And even then it would take longer than this, unless the king of Qarath is a complete idiot.”

“Macht Rome is the greatest leader we’ve ever had,” Randel said.

“Maybe Qarath surrendered,” Noah said.

“Why would they do that?” Lukas asked.

“And who is that?” Gage asked, pointing at the large dust cloud to the south.

“That has to be another army,” Strout said. “The question is who.”

“It looks like our army is hurrying to get into the city before they get here,” Lukas said. He looked at Cowley. “Do you think that means we’re allies with the Qarathians now?”

Cowley shrugged. “It sure looks like it.”

“I don’t understand,” Gage said. “Lowellin told the general to besiege the city. Why would Kemp go against his orders?”

“Maybe because whoever is coming poses a bigger threat,” Cowley said.

“We can sit here and talk about this all day,” Strout said, “but if we don’t get moving, we’re going to get left outside.” He spurred his horse forward, but Cowley put up a hand to stop him.

“Hold on.”

Strout gave him a dark look. “Why?”

“I don’t know,” Cowley said. “I want to think about this some more.”

“What’s there to think about? Our army is marching into the city. We came here to join up with them, but we’re going to lose our chance.”

“No. We came here to see if we could find Fen and the others and help them.”

“They might already be in the city,” Lukas said. He looked like he wanted to get into the city too. Cowley didn’t blame him. The thought of being trapped out here with an unknown enemy wasn’t a pleasant one.

“I don’t think so,” Cowley said.

“But you don’t know.” Strout wheeled his horse and came back to Cowley. “We’re running out of time. You need to make a decision. What’s it going to be?”

Cowley nodded. “We’re staying out here.”

“Based on what?” Strout demanded.

“I don’t think Fen is in there. If we go in, we’re stuck. We won’t be able to help Fen and the others.”

“I agree with Cowley,” Batu piped up. “I think being trapped in the city is a bad idea.”

Strout gave him a dark look, then turned back to Cowley. “I hope you’re sure about that.”

“No, I’m not,” Cowley admitted. “I wish I was, but I’m not. But I’ve made my decision.”

“If Fen is in there,” Noah said, “he won’t be bothered by a little siege. He can crush that whole army by himself.”

“With help from Karliss,” Batu added.

“And Aislin,” Randel said.

“I want to get closer, though,” Cowley said. “Let’s head for the patch of trees over there.”

╬ ╬ ╬

“Damn,” Noah said. “I was hoping they’d kill that bloody sorcerer.

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.