[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
maintain his focus on them.
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Now, Shan moved to spread chaos through the rest of the massive force. He
struck a group of warriors who were about to reinforce the front lines. Fast
as a prairie fire, fifty men collapsed in death.
Up and down the ranks men started to die. Shan assailed them with a cruel
randomness, sometimes just killing one man among many before moving on to drop
a dozen together. The
Sabuto front lines turned in confusion as the screaming grew behind them. At
this point, Shan had already killed four hundred warriors, and it was starting
to shake the Sabuto with fear.
Although Dreibrand did not know Shan was now attacking with magic, he sensed a
wavering in the enemy. Hacking and thrusting with his sword, Dreibrand noticed
the warding crystal flare on the end of his sword. Then, much to his surprise,
he heard words. They were like thoughts in his head, spoken in Shan s voice.
Push harder! Break them now!
Dreibrand heeded the signal, trusting that Shan knew the moment was right.
Rallying the Yentay, Dreibrand ordered Tytido to make a fresh charge at the
Sabuto. Then Dreibrand sought Xander.
Bodies littered the trampled pasture and Starfield jumped over the gruesome
heaps as his master urged speed. To every warrior he passed, Dreibrand shouted
the order to charge.
Even through the din of battle, Xander heard Dreibrand shouting orders, and
the Temu General intercepted him.
Starfield shook to a stop with lather dripping from quivering flanks. Before
Xander spoke, Dreibrand pointed his sword at the Sabuto and said, Renew your
charge. We can drive them back now. Shan is attacking!
But they are outflanking us to the west. I need to go there, Xander
protested.
Shan will protect that flank, Dreibrand said. The thought had just entered
his head but he believed it utterly. Trust me, General Xander. Can you not
see their panic and disarray? Our time to push is now.
Xander s eyes darted among scenes of mayhem. He would not delay his decision,
but it was hard to have faith in Shan when it was impossible to see the rys s
works.
You better be right, Xander growled.
I better! Dreibrand shouted. He saluted the Temu General with his sword as
he spun to return to the Yentay.
The Temu infantry and cavalry charged the Sabuto with renewed effort while
Shan resumed his assault with invisible magic. The rys concentrated on the
portion of the Sabuto Army attempting to outflank the Temu and gain some
higher ground. Shan sowed sufficient terror there to allow the
Temu to drive back the advance.
Shan started to announce his presence more visibly by burning the occasional
victim in an incinerating blast. Magic flowed through Shan s mind and soul at
a staggering rate as the level of his destruction rose.
Casting death upon his enemies gave Shan such a sense of superiority that he
was tempted to take a maniacal pleasure from it. Only his initial revulsion
for killing saved him from the lamprey of addictive omnipotence that sucked at
his mind.
With a gasp Shan ended his spells, and his chin dropped onto his chest. He
muffled a sob, attempting to conceal his stormy emotions from his bodyguards.
Miranda, my cloak, he hissed.
His eyes churned with blue fire that glowed on the perspiration beaded on his
face. Miranda leaned
over to retrieve his cloak from a saddlebag.
Shan s vision had left the battlefield and he looked through his physical
eyes, but he could not see normally yet. He turned from the others and faced
Miranda as she shook out his folded cloak. The features of her face were
blurred by the details he perceived. He could see each blood cell pushing
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through her veins, and the aura of her lifeforce was as clear to Shan as the
sun in the sky. He could feel her heart beat as if he were a child in her
womb.
Miranda draped the cloak over Shan s shoulders and without needing to be asked
she pulled up the hood. She could tell that he was upset and did not want to
be seen.
He reached for her hand, but the power in his touch made her hand
involuntarily jerk away. Shan hoped he had not hurt her. He had killed nearly
two thousand men that day, and he had wanted only to feel an instant of
gentleness.
The mad struggle between the armies peaked in a killing frenzy. The Sabuto
withstood the fresh
Temu charge briefly, but Shan s assault had taken a toll on their minds and
the Sabuto began to lose their nerve.
Yet one warrior remained undaunted. A shrill yell of challenge greeted
Dreibrand as he beat down his closest opponent. Dreibrand saw the mounted
warrior, who shook his strange weapon at
Dreibrand. The warrior had a shaved head and was apparently making a formal
gesture of challenge. One end of his weapon had metal claws holding a bloodied
stone and the handle ended in a cruel barbed spear.
The large muscular man did not look Sabuto either. Long straight features
framed his fearless eyes, and hundreds of purposefully made scars adorned his
bare chest with designs. Dreibrand guessed that he was a Sabuto ally from a
southern tribe who had apparently joined the war to show the wealthier tribes
what a real fighter was.
The warrior fell silent and came at Dreibrand with a startling suddenness. The
man s body flew forward in fluid connection with his horse and the warclub
came back for a dreadful blow.
The passions of battle had thoroughly roused Dreibrand s skills and he faced
his foe, ready for the challenge. He blocked the swiping club with his shield,
trying to angle away the force of the blow, but the impact still jarred his
whole body. As quick as the club fell, the warrior lifted the weapon and spun
it around. Speeding by, the warrior jabbed backward with the spear end at
Dreibrand s kidney area. Luckily the point missed its target and glanced off
Dreibrand s armor.
Dreibrand pulled his horse around just in time to meet the warrior s second
assault. The speed with which the man had maneuvered his mount surprised
Dreibrand, who was also an accomplished rider. Leveling his sword beneath his
shield, Dreibrand prepared to block another swing from the warclub. He grunted
when the blow struck his shield, but concentrated on stabbing his opponent as
he passed. The force of the blow knocked his aim low, but Dreibrand pierced
the warrior s thigh with his underhanded strike.
The warrior grimaced when his flesh was ripped open and the pain made his
attack falter.
Dreibrand pursued the advantage, knowing one wound would not be enough to stop
this warrior.
Starfield whirled in response to direction from only Dreibrand s knee and this
fast move gave
Dreibrand one clear swipe at the warrior s unarmored back. The warclub only
half blocked the sword, which cut deeply across a shoulder blade.
The wound would have devastated a lesser man, but this warrior managed a
counterattack. The crushing stone head of the warclub swung wide and the
handle caught Dreibrand across the torso.
Determined to finish the duel, Dreibrand grabbed the handle and pulled the
warrior toward him.
The two horses were side by side now and agitated by the closeness. Normally
the warrior would have been strong enough to yank his weapon free, but the
wound on his back severed his strength. Instead, he launched himself at
Dreibrand.
Not expecting the man to leave his saddle, Dreibrand could not react in time
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to the oncoming body.
Knocked off his horse, Dreibrand fell to the ground with the warrior on top.
They held the warclub between them and Dreibrand tried to hit the man with his
sword, but the warrior was too close to get cut. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
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maintain his focus on them.
Page 94
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
Now, Shan moved to spread chaos through the rest of the massive force. He
struck a group of warriors who were about to reinforce the front lines. Fast
as a prairie fire, fifty men collapsed in death.
Up and down the ranks men started to die. Shan assailed them with a cruel
randomness, sometimes just killing one man among many before moving on to drop
a dozen together. The
Sabuto front lines turned in confusion as the screaming grew behind them. At
this point, Shan had already killed four hundred warriors, and it was starting
to shake the Sabuto with fear.
Although Dreibrand did not know Shan was now attacking with magic, he sensed a
wavering in the enemy. Hacking and thrusting with his sword, Dreibrand noticed
the warding crystal flare on the end of his sword. Then, much to his surprise,
he heard words. They were like thoughts in his head, spoken in Shan s voice.
Push harder! Break them now!
Dreibrand heeded the signal, trusting that Shan knew the moment was right.
Rallying the Yentay, Dreibrand ordered Tytido to make a fresh charge at the
Sabuto. Then Dreibrand sought Xander.
Bodies littered the trampled pasture and Starfield jumped over the gruesome
heaps as his master urged speed. To every warrior he passed, Dreibrand shouted
the order to charge.
Even through the din of battle, Xander heard Dreibrand shouting orders, and
the Temu General intercepted him.
Starfield shook to a stop with lather dripping from quivering flanks. Before
Xander spoke, Dreibrand pointed his sword at the Sabuto and said, Renew your
charge. We can drive them back now. Shan is attacking!
But they are outflanking us to the west. I need to go there, Xander
protested.
Shan will protect that flank, Dreibrand said. The thought had just entered
his head but he believed it utterly. Trust me, General Xander. Can you not
see their panic and disarray? Our time to push is now.
Xander s eyes darted among scenes of mayhem. He would not delay his decision,
but it was hard to have faith in Shan when it was impossible to see the rys s
works.
You better be right, Xander growled.
I better! Dreibrand shouted. He saluted the Temu General with his sword as
he spun to return to the Yentay.
The Temu infantry and cavalry charged the Sabuto with renewed effort while
Shan resumed his assault with invisible magic. The rys concentrated on the
portion of the Sabuto Army attempting to outflank the Temu and gain some
higher ground. Shan sowed sufficient terror there to allow the
Temu to drive back the advance.
Shan started to announce his presence more visibly by burning the occasional
victim in an incinerating blast. Magic flowed through Shan s mind and soul at
a staggering rate as the level of his destruction rose.
Casting death upon his enemies gave Shan such a sense of superiority that he
was tempted to take a maniacal pleasure from it. Only his initial revulsion
for killing saved him from the lamprey of addictive omnipotence that sucked at
his mind.
With a gasp Shan ended his spells, and his chin dropped onto his chest. He
muffled a sob, attempting to conceal his stormy emotions from his bodyguards.
Miranda, my cloak, he hissed.
His eyes churned with blue fire that glowed on the perspiration beaded on his
face. Miranda leaned
over to retrieve his cloak from a saddlebag.
Shan s vision had left the battlefield and he looked through his physical
eyes, but he could not see normally yet. He turned from the others and faced
Miranda as she shook out his folded cloak. The features of her face were
blurred by the details he perceived. He could see each blood cell pushing
Page 95
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
through her veins, and the aura of her lifeforce was as clear to Shan as the
sun in the sky. He could feel her heart beat as if he were a child in her
womb.
Miranda draped the cloak over Shan s shoulders and without needing to be asked
she pulled up the hood. She could tell that he was upset and did not want to
be seen.
He reached for her hand, but the power in his touch made her hand
involuntarily jerk away. Shan hoped he had not hurt her. He had killed nearly
two thousand men that day, and he had wanted only to feel an instant of
gentleness.
The mad struggle between the armies peaked in a killing frenzy. The Sabuto
withstood the fresh
Temu charge briefly, but Shan s assault had taken a toll on their minds and
the Sabuto began to lose their nerve.
Yet one warrior remained undaunted. A shrill yell of challenge greeted
Dreibrand as he beat down his closest opponent. Dreibrand saw the mounted
warrior, who shook his strange weapon at
Dreibrand. The warrior had a shaved head and was apparently making a formal
gesture of challenge. One end of his weapon had metal claws holding a bloodied
stone and the handle ended in a cruel barbed spear.
The large muscular man did not look Sabuto either. Long straight features
framed his fearless eyes, and hundreds of purposefully made scars adorned his
bare chest with designs. Dreibrand guessed that he was a Sabuto ally from a
southern tribe who had apparently joined the war to show the wealthier tribes
what a real fighter was.
The warrior fell silent and came at Dreibrand with a startling suddenness. The
man s body flew forward in fluid connection with his horse and the warclub
came back for a dreadful blow.
The passions of battle had thoroughly roused Dreibrand s skills and he faced
his foe, ready for the challenge. He blocked the swiping club with his shield,
trying to angle away the force of the blow, but the impact still jarred his
whole body. As quick as the club fell, the warrior lifted the weapon and spun
it around. Speeding by, the warrior jabbed backward with the spear end at
Dreibrand s kidney area. Luckily the point missed its target and glanced off
Dreibrand s armor.
Dreibrand pulled his horse around just in time to meet the warrior s second
assault. The speed with which the man had maneuvered his mount surprised
Dreibrand, who was also an accomplished rider. Leveling his sword beneath his
shield, Dreibrand prepared to block another swing from the warclub. He grunted
when the blow struck his shield, but concentrated on stabbing his opponent as
he passed. The force of the blow knocked his aim low, but Dreibrand pierced
the warrior s thigh with his underhanded strike.
The warrior grimaced when his flesh was ripped open and the pain made his
attack falter.
Dreibrand pursued the advantage, knowing one wound would not be enough to stop
this warrior.
Starfield whirled in response to direction from only Dreibrand s knee and this
fast move gave
Dreibrand one clear swipe at the warrior s unarmored back. The warclub only
half blocked the sword, which cut deeply across a shoulder blade.
The wound would have devastated a lesser man, but this warrior managed a
counterattack. The crushing stone head of the warclub swung wide and the
handle caught Dreibrand across the torso.
Determined to finish the duel, Dreibrand grabbed the handle and pulled the
warrior toward him.
The two horses were side by side now and agitated by the closeness. Normally
the warrior would have been strong enough to yank his weapon free, but the
wound on his back severed his strength. Instead, he launched himself at
Dreibrand.
Not expecting the man to leave his saddle, Dreibrand could not react in time
Page 96
ABC Amber Palm Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abcpalm.html
to the oncoming body.
Knocked off his horse, Dreibrand fell to the ground with the warrior on top.
They held the warclub between them and Dreibrand tried to hit the man with his
sword, but the warrior was too close to get cut. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]