The Price of Loyalty by Lance Conrad

Author:Lance Conrad
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: adventure, fantasy, mastermind, historian
Publisher: Lance Conrad

Chapter 16

Fear sticks like a barb in the mind. Someone cold enough to take advantage of it can attach strings to those barbs and make puppets of men and women.

-Musings of the Historian

The others ran into town less than a half hour later. Gracie must have run like a gazelle to have gotten to them so quickly. All of them were puffing and heaving as they came into town, having run almost the whole way at my command. Most of them were carrying packs. Not knowing what the emergency was, it seems that they had left under the assumption that they wouldn't be coming back. I hoped it wasn't true, but it was far too early to say.

"What's going on?" Altur managed to gasp between heaving breaths.

"There's been an attack on a village north of here." I briefed them as they caught their breath. "I would have liked to have been more prepared, but our time is up. We are going to war. As I understand it, there are only two of them."

"Ah reckon... we could take two." Matt offered, still panting.

"I expect we could, but that wouldn't give us what we need."

"Now what do..."

"Shut up, Aegon. This is what you brought me in for and there is no time to waste. I will explain when I have a chance, but for now, we need to move and move quickly.

“Does anyone know the layout of the village being attacked? Is it close to your farm, Altur?”

“No, Tory. Our village was on the other side of the river and further back into the woods. If they didn’t know it was there, they probably missed it coming south.”

“Then I need you to head north to that village. Don't let anyone see you, but I need you to find me a rough barn, right close to town, or a short wall. Once you've found a good spot and got the lay of the town, head south and meet us on the road. I'll need you to draw me a map. Go now, leave your pack, we'll bring it along. You need to move fast, as fast as you can. Understand?"

He nodded and dropped his pack. I knew the kind of endurance he was capable of. It was possible that one of the others would have been better, but the heat of battle was no time to take chances. He ran north out of town, his chest puffing like a bellows.

He was in this to save Edana, it was all he thought about. I knew he would run until his heart burst if it meant she would live. Gracie's words about manipulation struck at me again, but I had no time to consider the morality of my situation.

"Grab the rest of the packs, we'll need to move quickly too, but we can't be exhausted. All of you will need to use your magic in a controlled fashion. , I need you to be ready."

To their credit, they all nodded and shouldered their packs. I picked up the one Altur had dropped and slung it over my shoulder.

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