Read Online Clash of Heroes: Nath Dragon meets The Darkslayer by Craig Halloran - Free Book Online Page A
Authors: Craig Halloran
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trail.
The soft clomping of shod horses became more distinct through the brush. A jangle of metal rattled against the bodies of the horses. There were three riders. Two towering men, one in front and another in the rear, with a stout, black-eyed man in the middle. They were unlike the men he had slain. They didn’t wear heavy armor, preferring a lighter protection. Their voices were rugged and somewhat jolly when they spoke. The chatter was constant when without warning, the one in the lead, a powerful, light-headed man, halted.
Nath sank deeper into the brush. His keen eyes caught a steely blue glimmer in the hard eyes of the lead man, who scanned the forest.
“What do you see?” said the man in the middle—who loaded his bow.
“I don’t see. I sense,” the brawny warrior replied.
Nath was far away, well beyond the line of sight of the underlings he’d banded with. His own senses were uncanny compared to those of the others. He’d figured that much out in his travels. Now, far down the hillside, he was certain the warrior’s stern gaze was right on him. It sent a shiver up his scales.
He can’t see me. I know he can’t see me.
Holding his breath and not blinking, Nath didn’t shuffle in the slightest.
Finally, after several long moments, a black-tailed deer burst out of the foliage and bounded through Nath’s view.
“Did you see that?” the archer said. “A black horn! I want that black horn!”
“You aren’t going to get it before me!” said the black warrior.
With a whip of their reins, the two men in the rear galloped up the hillside after the deer. That left the leader alone with a large dog. His eyes glided over Nath’s spot once more. With a snap of his reins, he moved on up the trail and out of sight.
The dog looked right at Nath, shook its tail, and went off after its master.
Nath unloaded his breath. He wasn’t certain why his heart had almost frozen in his chest, but it had. Perhaps he was uneasy, being a stranger in such a strange land. From his spot, he waited until the night fell hours later before he ventured forth again. Picking his way through the forest, he found the trail in the bush where they had chased after the deer. About a mile into it, he found a grove where the black-horned deer had fallen.
Reaching down, Nath touched the blood with his fingertips and rubbed them together. Impressive. He hadn’t figured the men capable of hunting down the incredibly swift deer. Not in such rugged terrain. They had proved him wrong. They had proven themselves formidable, and formidable men know things.
Tracking them, he cruised through the black jungle like a great lurking cat until the glow of a fire caught his eyes. He sniffed the air. The scent of cooked meat watered his mouth. Laughter and joking caught his ear.
Who are these men? I must know.
***
Like a shadow, Nath followed the men on their short journey. They made their way to a fort made from tall trees, and he heard them call it Outpost Fourteen. The establishment was big enough to hold a garrison of about a hundred men, and Nath could hear every conversation in the place if he chose to.
The travelers returned the horses and gear here and told a tale of fallen men and underlings a day’s walk away. Their leader, called Venir, grumbled and argued with the soldiers in the fort. He pressed them for help, but the soldiers seemed desperate and had nothing to offer.
According to the conversations Nath overheard, times were becoming grim for the men. The underlings had the upper hand on things. Not so long ago, the underlings had had a major victory at another fort called Outpost Thirty-One.
After parting ways in a gruff manner, the party of three men headed east several leagues, out of the jungle into a flat plain of high grasses and crooked trees. Deep down in the belly of the valley stood a shamble for living that the men he followed called Two-Ten City.
CHAPTER 17
It was dusk when Nath waded through the
The soft clomping of shod horses became more distinct through the brush. A jangle of metal rattled against the bodies of the horses. There were three riders. Two towering men, one in front and another in the rear, with a stout, black-eyed man in the middle. They were unlike the men he had slain. They didn’t wear heavy armor, preferring a lighter protection. Their voices were rugged and somewhat jolly when they spoke. The chatter was constant when without warning, the one in the lead, a powerful, light-headed man, halted.
Nath sank deeper into the brush. His keen eyes caught a steely blue glimmer in the hard eyes of the lead man, who scanned the forest.
“What do you see?” said the man in the middle—who loaded his bow.
“I don’t see. I sense,” the brawny warrior replied.
Nath was far away, well beyond the line of sight of the underlings he’d banded with. His own senses were uncanny compared to those of the others. He’d figured that much out in his travels. Now, far down the hillside, he was certain the warrior’s stern gaze was right on him. It sent a shiver up his scales.
He can’t see me. I know he can’t see me.
Holding his breath and not blinking, Nath didn’t shuffle in the slightest.
Finally, after several long moments, a black-tailed deer burst out of the foliage and bounded through Nath’s view.
“Did you see that?” the archer said. “A black horn! I want that black horn!”
“You aren’t going to get it before me!” said the black warrior.
With a whip of their reins, the two men in the rear galloped up the hillside after the deer. That left the leader alone with a large dog. His eyes glided over Nath’s spot once more. With a snap of his reins, he moved on up the trail and out of sight.
The dog looked right at Nath, shook its tail, and went off after its master.
Nath unloaded his breath. He wasn’t certain why his heart had almost frozen in his chest, but it had. Perhaps he was uneasy, being a stranger in such a strange land. From his spot, he waited until the night fell hours later before he ventured forth again. Picking his way through the forest, he found the trail in the bush where they had chased after the deer. About a mile into it, he found a grove where the black-horned deer had fallen.
Reaching down, Nath touched the blood with his fingertips and rubbed them together. Impressive. He hadn’t figured the men capable of hunting down the incredibly swift deer. Not in such rugged terrain. They had proved him wrong. They had proven themselves formidable, and formidable men know things.
Tracking them, he cruised through the black jungle like a great lurking cat until the glow of a fire caught his eyes. He sniffed the air. The scent of cooked meat watered his mouth. Laughter and joking caught his ear.
Who are these men? I must know.
***
Like a shadow, Nath followed the men on their short journey. They made their way to a fort made from tall trees, and he heard them call it Outpost Fourteen. The establishment was big enough to hold a garrison of about a hundred men, and Nath could hear every conversation in the place if he chose to.
The travelers returned the horses and gear here and told a tale of fallen men and underlings a day’s walk away. Their leader, called Venir, grumbled and argued with the soldiers in the fort. He pressed them for help, but the soldiers seemed desperate and had nothing to offer.
According to the conversations Nath overheard, times were becoming grim for the men. The underlings had the upper hand on things. Not so long ago, the underlings had had a major victory at another fort called Outpost Thirty-One.
After parting ways in a gruff manner, the party of three men headed east several leagues, out of the jungle into a flat plain of high grasses and crooked trees. Deep down in the belly of the valley stood a shamble for living that the men he followed called Two-Ten City.
CHAPTER 17
It was dusk when Nath waded through the
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