Read Online The Ventifact Colossus (The Heroes of Spira Book 1) by Dorian Hart - Free Book Online Page B

regret every scar he had carved into Dranko’s flesh, and his grandfather would stop blaming him for all the ills of his family.
    He hurled the bottle—not the first and not the last—as hard and far as he could, out into the sea. The waves swallowed it up.
    I’m going to be famous, Praska. Abernathy said I would be.
    The thought of his old friend, and the wine in his blood, filled him with a maudlin nostalgia. Instead of returning to the Greenhouse, he detoured into the so-called Pious Quarter where most of the churches, temples, and shrines to the Travelers were set in a ring around a sprawling public park. He hadn’t shown his face at the Church of Delioch in several years. How old would Praska be now? Twenty? Twenty-one?
    The grounds of the church were surrounded by a high fence of iron bars, and the main gate was closed, though two Healing Brothers stood guard. He thought he recognized one—Nolman, wasn’t it? Not a bad sort, if he recalled rightly. Dranko straightened his shirt, hoped the wine on his breath wouldn’t travel too far, and approached the gate.
    “Greetings, brothers!” he announced. “Long time no visit. Is Praska still here?”
    One of the guards squinted. “Who’s asking?”
    “Dranko?” said the other, the one he recognized. “Is that you, Blackhope?”
    “S’me!” said Dranko, wincing at his own slurred speech. “Nolman, isn’t it? I never forget a fa-name. Name. Or a face. Either one.”
    “You’re Dranko Blackhope?” asked the first man. “I’ve heard…” He stopped and smirked at his mate. “Your reputation is remarkable.”
    “Praska is not available,” said Nolman. “She is serving out a punishment in the Closet.”
    “The Closet?” Dranko shuddered. Isolated confinement had been a controversial disciplinary measure back when he was a novice. The scarbearers claimed it was effective, but High Priest Tomnic had nearly always overruled any suggestion of its infliction. “What did she do?”
    “That is not your concern,” said the second man.
    “Never mind,” said Dranko. “When she gets out, tell her Dranko came by to see her, okay? I live in the Greenhouse on the Street of Bakers now. Praska can stop by any visit. Any time for a visit.”
    “Go home and sober up,” said Nolman. “I’ll give your message to Praska when she’s released.”
    Dranko bowed so low he nearly toppled, wind-milled his arms to keep his balance, and staggered into the night.
     

 
     
    CHAPTER FOUR
     

     
    THE FIRST THING Ernie Roundhill did the next morning was sit at his desk and write a letter because he really ought to.
     
    Dear Mom and Dad,
    I’m writing you from my new house in Tal Hae. I never even got to the city on foot since Abernathy, the wizard, did some magic to pop us right inside his tower. Aravia had a word for it, but I can’t remember it right now. Oh, and it’s “us,” since there’s eight of us, not just me. Abernathy wanted a whole team to help him. The others all seem very nice, though one of them is part goblin and involved in a mysterious gem-trading business. His name’s Dranko, and he’s also a Delioch channeler.
    There’s also a young man like myself, Tor, he’s a swordsman, there’s a tough older gentleman who calls himself Grey Wolf who I think was a bodyguard. The others are Aravia, she’s a wizard, though not near as powerful as Abernathy, another woman named Morningstar who’s Ellish, and a stone-worker with a funny accent named Kibi. Oh, and Mrs. Horn, who’s kind of like the grandmum of the group. I think she must be older than Mrs. Appleford. They’re all such nice, interesting people, but also I think more complicated than the folks in White Ferry. It’s hard to explain.
    Abernathy has given us a house to live in, and we even have our own butler named Eddings. It feels weird to have someone serving me. Our house is called the Greenhouse, and it’s on the Street of Bakers here in Tal Hae. Isn’t that great? Our house even