Read Online Razumov's Tomb by Darius Hinks - Free Book Online

orders, the beastmen began pounding it against the gates, filling the narrow streets with an ominous booming sound.
    As the gates buckled and creaked, it quickly became clear that they would not last the morning—the supports cracked and groaned pitifully as the creatures piled their weight against them. Hollow-cheeked men shook their heads in fear as they watched the endless waves of attackers charging towards them. Arrows flew wide of their marks as soldiers’ hands began to shake with fear. None of them had ever seen such a vast gathering of beastmen. As the monsters scaled the walls, the moonlight flashed in their black, merciless eyes and glinted along their jagged blades.
    As the noise of battle swelled, Reiksgraf Niclas von Südenhorst calmly polished his monocle and pushed it into place. He and his knights were mustered in the street, on foot, just a few feet behind the creaking gates, and from this close the noise of the enemy was deafening. Their feral chant boomed through the gates like a storm, battering against the gnarled oak.
    The reiksgraf drew his sword and his knights did the same, filling the square with the sound of scraping metal. He turned to look back at the gleaming, orderly ranks and nodded in satisfaction. Their faces showed no trace of the panic that was running riot on the walls. “This is it,” he whispered, turning his gaze back towards the buckling gate. “Even my father never faced such a horde.”
    A squire approached and handed the reiksgraf his tall, winged helmet.
    “Is there still no sign of Captain Stoltz?” snapped the reiksgraf. “He should be here to witness my triumph.”
    “No, my lord,” replied the boy. “He hasn’t been seen since last night.”
    The reiksgraf slammed the helmet in place, unable to hide his irritation. “How inconvenient.” As the boy turned to leave, he called out to him. “Find a good vantage point then. And make sure you see everything that happens. I don’t want my deeds to go unrecorded.”
    The squire bowed and hurried gratefully away from the gates.
    “Come on, you filth,” hissed the reiksgraf, willing the gates to break. His whole body was trembling with suppressed energy and his breath was coming in short, snatched gasps. The gates bowed again as the screaming monsters slammed the ram against it. Support struts exploded in a shower of splinters, but the doors still held. The reiksgraf felt as though he was one blow from a place in history. He could already see his name preserved forever in legend and myth.
    He looked back again, over the heads of his knights. The light of the moon threw odd shadows across the tightly packed buildings, making it hard to see anything very clearly, but he could just about make out the square and the town hall at its centre. His chest swelled with pride. The Grand Astromancer was relying on him. The reiksgraf looked down at the keen edge of his sword. On this fateful day, the safety of the whole Empire was in his hands.
    He closed his eyes for a second to whisper a quick prayer. When he opened them again the doors were tumbling, unleashing a tide of such lunacy that, for a few seconds, he froze in horror. Then, as his knights raced past him, the reiksgraf shook his head and joined them, slamming down the visor of his helmet and launching himself into the fray.

    “It’s here.” Gabriel had set up his moondial on the steps of the town hall and was peering at it intently.
    “Are you sure?” cried Caspar, straining to be heard over the attack on the gates. The reiksgraf had left a small group of knights behind to guard the wizards, and Caspar had to barge through them to get a clearer look at the device. Morrslieb was scattering a bewildering combination of shadows across its face and Caspar shook his head in confusion. “How can you understand it?”
    Thaddeus Groot was standing a few feet away, leaning heavily on two of his guards. He was watching Gabriel intently as he turned the metal rings. “Your