Total pages in book: 146
Estimated words: 137226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 686(@200wpm)___ 549(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 137226 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 686(@200wpm)___ 549(@250wpm)___ 457(@300wpm)
“They called the dragon Magni,” I say. “Do they think it’s the sorcerer?”
“Yes,” the woman says breathlessly. “They believe it’s Magni in his true form.”
“And you?” Brynla asks her.
“I think they’re full of shit,” she says.
Finally I see faint light up ahead, the outline of a door, and we burst through it into a space filled with filtered light, the air heavy with the smell of hay and manure. It’s disorienting for a moment, until I realize we’ve come out into a stable, a row of stalls with horses, with a carriage parked outside, two horses attached and nibbling on hay scattered on the sandy ground. This wasn’t something we were counting on—we thought Vidar, Raine, and Feet would be back here by now under the disguise of the Black Guard—but beggars can’t be choosers.
“Everyone in the carriage!” I yell. Everyone runs forward out of the barn and I climb up onto the driver’s seat with Kirney beside me, Brynla and Lemi staying in the coach with the rest of the freed prisoners.
I clack my tongue and snap the reins, and the horses rear in surprise before thundering across the desert. I keep coaxing them, glancing over my shoulder at the convent, the dark mass of a castle as it rises from the stark desert floor, like a blight on the land. So far no one has emerged in pursuit of us, giving us a head start.
It isn’t until we’ve passed through a narrow gorge, the east gate of Lerick on the horizon, flanked by dragon statues, that a Black Guardsman bursts out from a row of sagebrush and comes galloping from around the corner, heading straight for us.
“Vidar!” I yell at the quickly approaching guard, his black steed, the same breed as Onyx, moving faster than any horse should. Even if the guardsmen aren’t using suen, it’s apparent their horses are.
“Vidar! Belfaust! Raine!” Kirney hollers at him. “Raise your hand if it’s you!”
The guardsman raises his mace instead, swinging around the spiked ball, about to aim it at our horses. With his other hand he raises the shield of his helmet, showcasing a pale man with red eyes underneath.
“Oh fuck, not them,” I say, trying to maneuver the horses out of the way.
But the guardsman keeps coming, letting go of the reins, a sword in the other hand now, almost upon us.
He’s about to let the mace go when suddenly he’s hit with something, right between the eyes, like a tiny arrow, and he falls backward off the horse, left in a heap in the dust.
“What the fuck was that?” I yell, passing the reins to Kirney while I stare behind me, the guardsman writhing in the sand while his horse runs off in another direction.
Suddenly Brynla pops her head out of the carriage, grinning at me, her purple hair having come loose from her braids and flowing behind her.
I don’t think she can get any more beautiful.
“I stole more than an egg from the Harbringer,” she says proudly. “A miniature poisoned arrow.”
I stand corrected. She’s now the most beautiful sight in the world.
She blows me a kiss and then sticks her head back into the carriage.
I let out a little growl, my cock pulsing beneath my armor. If we make it out of here alive, I’m going to ravage the fuck out of her and I don’t care if the entire ship hears it.
Kirney gives me an odd look.
“Just keep driving,” I tell him. “We have to get through Lerick before we can relax.”
And a carriage galloping at full speed is going to attract a lot of attention.
Luckily by the time we pass underneath the east gate, there isn’t a Black Guard to be seen. Seems Vidar and the rest did their job.
I take the reins over from Kirney as the city appears and the streets get narrow, doing my best to dodge the civilians, even though we’re taking out and knocking over every street cart we see, galloping through shop awnings, decimating the tents of a market, spices flying in the air until the horses are painted in shades of red, yellow, and white.
People are yelling, running around in a panic, and in the distance I see dark figures up on scaffolding and the roofs of buildings, arrows being drawn, and then three guardsmen galloping toward us.
“Friend or foe, friend or foe?” I yell, not daring to slow down as the carriage careens around another tight corner, everyone yelping from behind me.
It isn’t until one of the guards gets close and flips up his shield that I see that it’s Vidar.
“Head for the ship!” he yells, as he, Raine, and Feet come into formation behind us. “Watch for the arrows.”
Just as he says that, arrows fly from the rooftops, hitting the sides of the carriage.
One of them hits Kirney in the arm.